An: Once again, for warnings and all that refer to the first chapter. So as to not confuse anyone- Quinzite (which is a pink stone) is Chibiusa's name in this world.

Venus's Carousel

It wasn't a question of 'When will this end?' so much as 'How long this time?' that had Minako sigh end in a groan. The pain she felt was nothing more than soreness she felt thought her body. Beside her the bed was empty and rumpled with the strong scent of...

She closes her eyes not wanting to think about it any more. She was becoming more practiced at this kind of thing. After all, it was the only way to remain sane. Getting up, the pale blonde haired woman went to the bath to shower. As the hot spray of water washed over her she lets out a soft hiss at the sprays hitting some bruised spots.

"He was too rough." She mumbles to herself before making the effort of cleaning herself.

The 'he' she was referring to was the current king of not only earth but of this...this thing he called the Golden Empire. She shivers remembering the first time she had been taken. The memory of it rushed back to her making her choke back a sob. Her body leans against the cool tiles shivering at both the cold and the experience.

Not Mamoru. No, couldn't have been him, but it was undeniable. Even when they fought Dark Endymion during the time that Queen Meteria had been resurrected by such a naive Beryl, it hadn't been this bad. So what had changed?

She breathes sliding down to the bottom of the stall, huddling a bit as if she could retreat from this crazy world, this madness she had been brought into.

Yet the reminders, the things she couldn't forget such as the bruises and memories kept bringing her back. Especially the growing expanse of her abdomen wouldn't allow the denial.

She had to get rid of this. Was her first thought when she had first discovered it. She didn't want him to get his claws on something so innocent.

He brushes the paling blond hair of the delusional girl next to him. After all this time, she still cooes and giggles happily when he was around her. It was sort of pitiful if one would think on all the outright horrors that she had witnessed. Yet, much to his amusement, she seems to take them as if he was right.

Which he was of course.

"Mamo-chan." the blonde haired princess smiles at him. " When do you think the others will come over? I was hoping we can go shopping."

"Soon, Usa-ko. Minako seems to have taken ill, but I'm sure Setsuna would enjoy your company." The dark king told her before leaning over and kissing her lips. How depressing this girl had become. From the powerful senshi and princess she once was, to this broken helpless girl she was now.

Ah well, according to plan.

"She is?" Her blue eyes widen with worry and fear, " Maybe we should take her to the doctor? "

"Don't worry about it, Usa-ko." He coos and pulls her close, " I'll take very good care of her. You know I always do."

She was hesitant for a moment before she smiles and nods. Of course he would. He always took good care of everything. Including herself and their children. "I think I'll go see how Quin and the others are." She leans up giving him a peck on the cheek, "I'll see you at dinner."

The Dark king watching the young woman leave humming to herself and shook his head.

He wonders idly just how long she would delude herself.

" You can't make me!" Minako glares struggling against the droid as they bound her hands and feet. "You can't do this to me Mamoru! You can't!"

He snorts, slightly dispassionately looking at her, "Venus, I can do as I please. Now I will not have you do this again just because of your own delusions."

"I would rather die than to give you this child." She spat.

"That, " He said, "Makes little difference to me. One way or another that child will live. Whether you do is up to you. " He walks over as the droids stood aside and looks down at her, " You see, Venus, if you decide to die, then who would look after that naive princess of yours? Setsuna? Ha, she's so deeply ashamed of herself that she can't stand to be in the same room." He clicks his tongue in a pitying manner, "Suicide, Venus, is for cowards who are too weak to live with the prospect that they don't get what they would like to have."

"It's better than..than.." She trails off and gave a frustrated growl, "I hate you."

"Cute." He turns, "Make sure she does no damage to herself or the fetus. Keep her well fed and clean." He glances over his shoulder at the angry senshi of Venus, "If she's good, we might even let her walk around."

Months passed, though the only way she could tell they had was the growth of her baby inside of her. The child that nudged and poked her. The shifting motions and cravings-along with all the other odd things- her body was doing. True to thier programming, the droids took rather good care of her.

Minako counted herself lucky that the Dark King was kind enough to allow Usagi to visit her.

Her princess chattered happily about the baby that was coming and Minako could only pretend that it was fine. She couldn't find it in her heart to tell her the truth. The truth that her 'wonderful' Mamo-chan was a cruel and scary man.

She had learned her lessons beforehand. Usagi would ignore and doubt whatever Minako said to keep her beliefs alive.

This existence, Minako thought once, was quite bitter and bleak.

She longed for the days before when they were all happy and had hardly no worries. She used to curse the pink haired child for fetching them from their reality, she used to wish hell upon the remaining members of the Black Moon Clan for stealing the Prince.

Had none of that happened, they would've been happy.

But she found wishing and being resentful too laboring. It wouldn't change anything. It wouldn't change the current position she was in.

Such as the sudden pain that shot through her and the feeling of wetness that began to soak the bed she was sitting in.

"I'm going to kill him." The newcomer had said while they were having tea in the gardens. "He toys with us!"

"Seiya, " Minako says feeling ever more weary, " Let it go."

The black haired woman gave her a piercing glare, narrowing her sapphire blue eyes, "I will not !" She nearly smashed the cup in her hand on the table. " I'm sick of the slap and tickle games. I ..I'm tired of the guards watching us! I want to..to.."

Tears were falling out of the woman's eyes as she shudders and rubs the tears away quickly. As if to banish them. "I hate how he makes me feel, Minako."

Though Minako could empathize with the woman, she couldn't bring herself to give her any hope. Minako herself had lost such things on her son's second birthday. Still she leans over and rests a hand on Seiya's shoulder.

"It will pass." she says sounding older than she really was, "And eventually, you'll get used to it. You may be able to use it to your advantage. It's sorta like being a-"

"A whore." Seiya grumbles angrily, "I ..I won't accept it! I won't become like you and the others. I won't be compliant like this. I can't."

Her hand slips away, Minako could only look at Seiya with pity, much like the dark king used to look at her only not maliciously. She truly felt sorry for Seiya.

And as expected, watching as the king broke Seiya's spirit was even sadder when she realized her own was gone.

The only one that was even remotely happy was Usagi, who still lives in her waking dream world.

She sighs softly and sips her tea. She wonders which one of them were more pitiful. Them or her?

Minako brushes Seiya's hair as the woman had finally fallen into a fitful sleep. Hours earlier she had given birth to a baby boy and had cried ranted and raved when she learned that she would not have contact with him without being supervised by the king himself.

Which meant hardly ever.

Minako understood this, her heart broke for the woman and she stayed with her after she had been cleaned up. Setsuna had come in quietly, almost a shadow of her former self, to check on them before leaving so neither would catch her watching them.

Usagi had been there to congratulate Seiya on the birth of a beautiful baby boy. But Seiya had glared at the blonde woman and cursed her. Telling her she was a complete coward and idiot.

Usagi had left in tears. Presumably to cry to Endymion about this.

Minako wonders now how her mind had shifted from calling that man 'Mamoru' to 'Endymion' so casually.

Probably because Mamoru would never have done what Endymion did now. She glances away towards the door remembering her own encounters with the king when he wasn't concentrated on her or anyone else in particular.

It was when he had invited them to a dinner to meet his 'trusted' adviser, Sailor Galaxia.

Seiya had gone crazy trying to kill the woman. The only thing that kept the black haired senshi alive was the fact that she was pregnant with the king's child- in which he told Galaxia not to hurt her too badly- and that Minako had pleaded with her on behalf of the child within her.

Least to say it had been an extremely tense dinner.

A pair of blue eyes gaze up at her with a large smile and missing tooth. His hair was a light orange color that boarded on being blonde. His outfit was simple today since he wasn't going anywhere special.

In the distance she could see the king surveying them all as the children ran around their 'mothers'-though Rutile seemed so..sad since Diamond refused to acknowledge the boy, leaving him with Gen and Biron to keep him company.

She knew the dark king did not trust them. Frankly, she didn't care right now.

"Mama." The boy said with a slight lisp, "What do you think? Do you like it?"

It was a colorful picture of stars and a planet with stick figures of herself and him waving. At least, she assumed it was herself and him.

Still she smiles at him, Topaz, her son. Even if Endymion was a pain in the ass, the years and children had mellowed the man out just a tad- not as much as she wished- and she had been able to see her boy more.

"It's beautiful." She told him pulling him into a tight hug, "It's very beautiful."

She wonders how she could've ever thought to destroy this wonderful little boy while he was still within her stomach all those years ago.

She remembered the reasons for it though and had hoped he wouldn't be cruel.

Yet thankfully, he-like many of the others with the exception of Quinzite for some reason- were pretty much nice and kind children.

She thinks on what that meant and a small part of her concluded that it may be due to the fact that Endymion, despite being pretty much an evil man in all the ways it counts, was not entirely heartless.

Could it be possible that there may be some good left in him?

She was brought out of her musings by her son tugging on her arm, "Come on Mama!" Topaz drags her to the Merry go round that had been installed in the palace gardens. "Lets go for a ride!"

"Of course." She says smiling as she spots that even Diamond was stealing looks at the children as she and Usagi climbed on as well to ride.

Perhaps, she thought to herself as the carousel started up and her horse lurched forward, it isn't as bleak as I thought it would be.