By Ummster
Well…this is my first fan fiction piece. Plus, I'm only 13. So don't LAUGH! Actually, I don't usually write like this –I'm more of a humorous writer. But I felt like actually trying some serious, hardcore writing. Hope you like it. The plot's mostly like other sailor moon alternate universe stuff, where Serenity first falls in love with Endymion. It takes another scoop of the whole deal –the earth and moon are on bad terms even before the lovers meet. PLEASE REVIEW! That helps make it even more enjoyable to you guys.
It's the Silver Millennium, and Serenity, princess of the moon, is engaged and ready to be married. But what happens when the prince of a warring planet appears and sweeps Serenity off her feet?
Prologue
The sweet scent of lavender blossoms washed across the tranquil meadow, intermingling with the melancholy tones of a paroquet crowing for its lost mate. The girl watched, awed, as the rainbow-feathered bird fluttered into the distance towards a blanket of pale orange and dusty-peach in the sunset. A rose petal floundered in the gentle breeze and landed softly in the folds of her delicate white embroidery, a specialty of moon royalty.
The rose was left unnoticed as Serenity turned her feet towards the bank of a foaming waterfall and squatted down on the landscape. She smiled as she recounted the numerous times she had visited this waterfall –a place she always took solace to when she had a question on the tip of her mind, yet was too abashed to ask Luna.
Her mother, the second crowned Serenity in the line of moon queens, had left suddenly and unexpectedly to visit their cousins on Mercury. Selene be blessed, she hadn't been to Mercury in ions and wished to keep it that way. Though she was only 16, she had developed a severe distaste for scholarly activities. It wasn't that she disliked the people of Mercury –for one, Ami, the blue-haired scout and Serenity's close friend, was from Mercury, and as far as she was concerned, Ami's eagerness to snuck her head in a nice, thick textbook didn't bother her. In fact, Ami was often the one she consulted when in need of assistance with her royal studies. It was the fact that they seemed to have nothing better to do that worried her.
There were so many things to be enjoyed in life –food, poetry, friends, good times- yet she was unhappy to say that she wished she had more. She realized that this was being a bit greedy; she was a princess after all, and basked in the most delectable clothing, food selections, and for the most part lived a contented life, if not for the fact that being a princess also meant Serenity was forced to be particular about the people she attended to. Serenity wished she could stroll through the markets as she liked, but of course, that was too dirty. And attending a normal school –too much publicity. The truth, as she hated to admit, was that she was completely isolated apart from the domains of her mother's palace.
In sequence with her thoughts, a grandmotherly voice rang out, "Serenity! What are you doing by that waterfall again?"
Luna loved to follow her, she mused, laughing to herself. Never had she crossed the palace boundaries for more than five minutes without her feline guardian promptly catching her.
"I was just thinking about mother," she replied, and was surprised by the honesty of her answer.
Luna sighed belatedly. "Dear, when will you learn? A princess is not meant to think. A princess is meant to act, and be a model for her people."
"I don't want to be a model for my people," Serenity mumbled, not realizing that Luna was still listening to her.
Luna left on that sad note, wondering what would become of Serenity. She recalled proudly how much kindness and tenderness the girl could unexpectedly unleash, but unfortunately she was the only one who knew of the uncharacteristic trait. Serenity was known to have a hot temper and fierce spirit.
It's not her fault, Luna mused. She was raised to be the perfect heir. The midnight-black cat pawed her way through the wild grass outside the palace and with a flash, disappeared into the night.
Serenity watched as her guardian teleported back into the familiar terrains of the palace. Luna would never understand her loneliness.
Knowing that the waterfall was not going to be of any help anymore, she unfolded her arms around her knees and gently lifted herself from the ground, dusting herself down like she'd seen her mother do so many times. In some ways, she resembled her mother. They both had the same flowing hair, set in twin buns atop a short forehead. However, her mother's hair was silvery and regal, while hers was girlish in its sunflower yellowness. Besides, her lips were light and full –inexperienced- while her mother possessed thin, crisp lips, capable of commanding, consoling, and scolding. The older also towered over her daughter and seemed to be wise beyond her years, while the younger was consistently told by her mother's advisors to wizen up.
No, they're nice people, she soothed, tears threatening to blur her vision. They just expected her to be more like her mother. And that was as impossible a task as could be made –at least for her.
Her mother was her idol- but there was something about her that often felt foreign and mysterious. Like she was hiding a great secret from her. Yet Serenity knew her mother well enough to know that she was always open to her, as she was in return. Nevertheless, she conceded that her mother was often reluctant to reveal information about her father's whereabouts. He had been killed during a war that had occurred even before Serenity had been born…and she knew that it was obviously an emotional subject for her mother. It was her father, though, and she had the right to know. The fire of curiosity often burned through her, torturing her with questions, but she was too respectful to ever bring up the topic with the pressures of a possible war with the revolting Terrans. It was almost as if Serenity II didn't trust her. The young princess often felt that she wasn't good enough for her mother. The thought saddened her, but she knew it was the truth.
It wasn't that she was ugly. She had the prettiest pair of sky-blue eyes, clear and playful, that basked in a pale glorious skin tone, often flushed red with good health. Her body was delicate in its petiteness, subtlety curved to femininity, from her rounded breasts to the slight outward bend of her hips. Those scrumptious hips lead to a pair of legs that stretched forever, adding the most to her height. She was enough to make any man drool.
But that wasn't the case. She was affianced to the prince of Mercury, Seran (unfortunately, yes, but she realized that for centuries, all the grooms for moon royalty had been from Mercury). Suddenly she realized that this must have been why her mother had abruptly left for Mercury. Serenity had never met her fiancé, and she was nearing the becoming age of marriage.
And now that the barbarians of Earth were turning against the Selene Alliance in an anticipated war, the moon needed to form all the alliances it could –beginning with the intellectual personnel of Mercury. If only the Terrans could mind their own business –claiming that the alliance was wrongly influencing their planet! The alliance remained peaceful, as always. Of course, they only want to reduce the alliances' power, Serenity thought bitterly.
"Excuse me, your highness?" Serenity recognized one of her mother's attendees standing on the edge of the meadow, the wind disrupting her robes. The woman's plump cheeks were flushed beneath a brink of curly brown hair, and she quickly averted the princess's headstrong gaze.
"Yes, Matilda?"
"Your mother has arrived. She asked for you to meet her at the dining hall –and she said to mention that she had guests." Serenity looked up, startled, fearing her premonitions were correct. Guests were constantly entering and leaving the moon palace, on political accounts, but never had she herself been called to greet them. As a child growing up, marriage had excited her, but now it felt as if it were being thrust upon her. Of course, there were the training sessions…Serenity blushed as she realized she hardly ever paid attention to them. There were so many other things to think about…
Matilda squirmed uncomfortably as Serenity's thoughts drifted elsewhere. She watched with curiosity as the girl's cheeks turned an innocent rosy pink and her lips pursed into a smile. So this was the queen's only daughter. Matilda had been told by a more experienced maid that Serenity could be quite moody at times, but that didn't seem to be the case. She looked sweet-tempered, almost naïve. Matilda's tense posture relaxed as she let her back fall into a more comfortable position. She was a good servant and was sure that she wouldn't be dissatisfying the princess any time soon.
Serenity's golden buns nodded slighted as her eyes drooped, carrying into a gentle slumber of beautiful thoughts. Suddenly, her eyes flew open and she caught the maid looking at her with evident concern. Not willing to risk being reprimanded –which her past servants seemed to enjoy- she drowsily steadied herself and was content in following Matilda back into the palace grounds. Her past servants had been rude and tempered with her anger, infuriating her by demanding perfection at the most unnecessary times, and she dared to hope that Matilda was different from the others.
The pair passed the familiar, yet still stunning palace walls, covered in ivy and decked in marvelous marble plating. Plush sheets of crimson velvet draped the entrance, towering over an ancient staircase, which winded above to the second ground. Serenity carefully pushed aside the transparent sheets covering the spiral architecture and daintily stepped onto the ivory steps, pushing up the hem of her thin white gown to obtain proper footing. Sensing footsteps, she peered out from behind linen, pushing aside wisps of her bangs which laid in disarray above her matted forehead.
Nearby, a set of startlingly clear midnight blue eyes watched curiously as a figure appeared from underneath the stairway, suddenly meeting another pair of sky blue eyes head on.