VII
Endymion was enjoying the ride, it was kind of slow and no matter how much he tried to get the old horse to speed up she stubbornly remained at the same speed. He wondered if the girl purposely gave him this horse knowing that it was so slow. When the horse suddenly stopped and refused to budge he wondered what spooked it or if this was as far as this horse went. He shrugged and tried to turn the horse around to go back. She wouldn't move.
He clicked his tongue like the girl had and the horse turned but nothing more. He dug his heels in, careful to inspire the beast but not hurt it. It remained undaunted. He slipped down and tugged on the reigns to try and move it by force. It didn't budge.
He dug his feet into the ground and pulled. The horse moved an inch but then stopped again. Endymion sighed. It wasn't going anywhere on it's own free will. He looked around and found apples growing on a nearby tree. He fed one to the horse as he thought and then tried to move the horse but it sat down.
He moved a few feet away and waved an apple in it's face, it didn't go anywhere. He rolled it a few feet between them and the horse looked at him like he was crazy.
He moved it closer to the old thing and she neighed in disagreement. He fed her another apple. She ate it and laid down. So obviously apples didn't move this horse anywhere, it just let her go to sleep.
He left the rest in the sack that was still sitting on the horse and gave up trying to make her move and walked back the way he came, hoping to find help for the great old mare. He heard movement behind him and he looked to see the horse standing as if nothing happened and she was a saint.
He frowned and walked backwards. She didn't move and looked bored and grazed the grass below her. He turned around and whistled to himself as he walked. He turned and the horse was the same distance away from him. It moved when he did and stopped when he turned to look back at her.
He kept walking and he didn't hear anything for awhile. He looked back and she was still standing where he left her. Maybe she didn't follow him. He frowned and kept walking. Once he was clearly out of view to the old girl he heard galloping and saw her coming to the top of the hill. Where she stopped seeing that he caught on.
"Come on girl." He grunted. "You want to follow me, so stop being stubborn!" But she sat down again. The longer he messed with the old beauty the more he thought that the girl set him up with this thing, knowing perfectly well what the horse was capable of. He'd have a word with her once he got back. He put his hands behind his back and whistled away as he walked, not looking behind him once to see if he was being followed.
He adjusted his arms to being over his head and resting against them as he walked back to the stable. The girl and the boy from earlier were working on a giant black and brown horse that had the eyes of a lover and was walking around them as they gave out orders.
The girl caught sight of him. "Where's Betty?"
Endymion stopped in the center of the training grounds and looked back to the hill he went down. Maybe he was mistaken and the horse was just sitting where he last left her. He shrugged.
"You left my horse in the middle of nowhere?" She griped.
"I was trying to make Betty come with me, but she refused, I wasn't going to force her if her will was made up." Just then the horse came galloping over the hill and stopped by him. Head butting him and nuzzling him. He laughed and pet the horse on her head. "Good girl, I knew you were behind me." He pulled out two apples and fed her. "See, no harm, no foul."
"You knew she was behind you the whole way?"
"She didn't want to be left alone, so she came, 'secretly' but she came."
Serenity was going to argue but he seemed to be in great spirits. Her plan was foiled by a smart Prince, she didn't think it was possible. A smart Prince, and being foiled. "Fine, just give her to me."
Serenity lead Betty back into the stalls and hooked her up and put out a pale of water for her. "Girl, I love you but you disappointed me, you were supposed to give him a challenge, but I can understand where you are coming from."
"How about this horse?" Endymion took out the budding female and brought her to the court yard before Serenity could object.
She groaned as the male horses perked up at the sight of a beauty. Her favorite stallion railed against the gate holding him in. He hadn't been broken yet, she hadn't started on him yet, she was still getting him to trust her and to trust her she needed to keep this female out of sight but known that she wasn't outside in the corral with another male horse. Endymion should have known, but he ignored any good horsemanship with this fool headed move.
The stallion raged against the door and it broke open. Sirius busted into the courtyard and Serenity yelled at Huey. "Get Bucky back inside the stables!"
Huey grabbed the reigns and brought the gentle beast back into the stalls and tied him up and closed a door just as Sirius rammed into it. Huey barely dodged the charging horse.
Sirius turned it's attentions to the beautiful girl horse. She didn't want him, yet or ever it seemed and she ripped herself out of Endymion's hands. "Goddess!" Serenity whistled and Goddess came running towards her, Serenity grabbed her mane and swung onto the back of the horse and ran her into the stables and hooked her up and closed the door. Sirius came busting back in, his eyes wild. Serenity stood between him and his prey.
"Sirius, stop!" Serenity's voice was calm but he didn't recognize her.
Huey realizing the problem pulled Endymion away from the entrance. "Come, fool."
"But she'll be hurt, I didn't realize that you had a stallion here!"
"She'll be fine, she's dealt with worse rages by Sirius before."
"Really?" Endymion wanted to watch and help.
"Yes." Huey tugged and Endymion didn't budge, much like Betty earlier today. "Come on, you won't help by watching, go tell Serenity that you won't be able to ride today because somebody riled the horses!"
"You'll be here to step in right?"
"Never been needed before, but yes." Huey shook his head. "Now go!"
Endymion reluctantly left, one last glance at the peculiar girl as she faced off the most dangerous horse ever, a white stallion, one that he'd never seen or believed to exist.
Once Endymion was gone, Huey returned to his princess, he lied to the prince, but it got him away and he was there if Serenity needed help.
"He's gone, change back." Once the words 'he's gone' reached Serenity's ears she was well ahead of Huey and changed back.
"Sirius." She purred and the horse stood still at the transformation. "Please, return to your stall, she's now back in her stall, and she won't be taken by anybody else. She's yours when she wants to be but for now you won't accomplish anything but pushing." Serenity took a step forward and Sirius reared back. "Come on boy, I wont hurt you, trust me." She held out her hand which held an apple. He looked away in distain. "Fine." Serenity tossed it into the air and he grabbed it with his teeth. She took another one and tossed it into the air but this time towards his stall and once it landed he ate it, knowing full well what she was doing. He dutifully went into and allowed them to shut the door, it would need to be repaired but for now Sirius wouldn't go anywhere.
Endymion found Serenity coming towards him, ready for a ride but he snagged her. "Unfortunately the horses are riled and they recommend not going for a ride right now."
"May I ask who riled the horses?" Mina knew Serenity would be livid if she found out her precious beasts were disturbed, especially by this man. Maybe she could cut Serenity off before she found out.
"I did, by accident, I was trying to see what one of them could do when a wild animal came tearing out at us."
"Sirius?" Mina asked wide-eyed.
"Yes." Endymion didn't seem to understand the implications.
At Endymion's answer Mina gulped, Serenity's prized creature, the one she found in the wild, managed to talk back to the stables and was slowly breaking, not to stop the spirit but rather to tame and enjoy where the rest were more laid back. The only wild horse they had ever seen.
It seemed Serenity knew as she, in another form, came rushing towards them. Mina knew when it was Serenity because they never had any new servants unless they were all introduced a month before they became one and was seen through intensive background checks to insure the safety of their monarchs. Serenity's forms were new to them, hence it was Serenity, Endymion would have no clue.
"How dare you!" Serenity raged, Mina let it happen, either that or Serenity would rage at her later tonight, she wanted to avoid that at all costs.
"How dare I?" Endymion asked confused. "How dare I what?"
"For some great horse handler, I've never seen anybody handle Betty nearly as well as I have, you sure are an idiot when it comes to horses!"
"Now wait a minute!" He yelled back. "It was an honest mistake!"
"HONEST!" Serenity huffed! "Honest my ass!" She used expletives for the first time in her life and it felt good to get away with it.
"I beg your pardon!" He demanded.
"No pardon! I will not apologize, you endangered the life of Huey, myself, and my horses!"
"They are not your horses!" Endymion made a gesture towards Mina and she winced, wishing he didn't involve her in this little fit. "They are hers and she can throw you out any time she wants!"
"Just stay away from my horses until you get somebody smart to go with you and stop you from being an idiot!" She stomped away before he could reply.
"Well." Mina stated delighted, she wasn't focused on at all in that little spat. "You got off pretty easy."
"You let a servant talk to me that way?" It took every mean bone in his body to say that, he felt servants weren't lesser to royalty in anyway except the fact that they had to obey his rules. He didn't understand what was wrong with him, usually he was much kinder but he felt bitter in having to come here at all and it was coming out in the worse ways possible.
"She is the best horse trainer we have." Mina rolled her shoulders. "As long as you abide by her rules when it comes to horses, you shouldn't have a problem with her. That means no touching of Goddess."
"Does she talk that way to you?"
"Occasionally." Mina shrugged again. "But I did something far worse when it came to them, I borrowed one and forgot to give it water, I fed it but I didn't give it water for two days when I took it to the far city."
"The far city?"
"Yes. There's two cities, the one that you saw this morning and the far city. Which is near the barrier on the east side of the palace. People live spread out and villages but there are only two major cities."
"How much ground does the barrier cover?"
"The dome covers well into a fourth of the moon. The rest is either uninhabitable or we can't expand the energy barrier that far."
"So there's a cap in how many people can live here?"
"Isn't there one in every planet? The earth has oceans that cover 2/3rds of your planet, and people can only live on the land which has things that can grown and sustain life. Venus is covered with gas volcanoes and nobody can live in a two mile radius of those. It's just how it is."
"Where do the buried go?"
"Catacombs. The ground is filled with them." Mina saw his look. "People can still pay homage to them. It's not like once you're dead you're gone. People live a long time here. I mean a long time. The servant boy who lead you to your quarters the other day, he's a hundred years old. He's not even from the moon." Mina smiled. "That being said people only have two kids, their bodies can only generate it. Both men and female. While they live on this planet. The queen, only one, Serenity. I mean me. It's so when the parents die, there is enough to replace them. It's partly why we need new blood."
Mina didn't know where this knowledge came from, she only vaguely listened to Luna these last few days but she now realized how important these lessons were, it was telling Serenity what a great responsibility she held hanging over her head. She needed to reproduce to keep the line going but also to let the people who live on the moon to stay alive once she was dead. Mina could also see now why Serenity was so against getting forced into a loveless marriage, she'd be living with it for a very long time.
"So how old are you?"
"You have to understand we do not look upon age the same way you do."
"How old are you?"
"I'm a hundred and eighty-five years old."
"Wow." Endymion looked at her. "You don't look a day older than eighteen."
"Our years are shorter than yours are but we have more of them but we do not age any faster than you do. In Earth years, I'm sure I'd only be eighteen."
"Your mother?"
"A daughter never discusses her mother's age." Selene cut in smoothly as she walked by dragging a servant boy by his elfin looking ear.
Mina rolled her eyes when only the servant boy was looking at her. Serenity, what would she do with her? "Of course, I didn't dare dream of it mother." She sent a meaningful look at the boy still held in the fingers of her highness.
Selene looked down at the boy. "He was in my room when I was sleeping, I was going to have a word with his headmistress."
"Queen Selene." Endymion bowed his head.
"I hope you are enjoying yourself Endymion."
"I am, thank you." He linked hands with Mina and smiled at the Queen, she smiled back but it was a little worried and dragged the boy away with a farewell.
"Selene used to like me, what did I do wrong?"
"You're hitting on her daughter, while she'd love to see me married, she doesn't want to see me gone."
"I suppose." He ignored his gut and turned to face Mina head on. "So Serenity, how about we go for a stroll into the gardens?"
"I would love that." Mina and Endymion headed into the gardens while Serenity got a tongue lashing from her mother.
"What do you think you're doing? You are royalty pretending to be a peasant, you have no right to swear at Endymion! If you were on his planet, he could demand your beheading without knowing who he was really killing!"
"He'd have to find me first!"
"Serenity, I understand the need to try and send him away, but you're only causing a rift between the planets, can't you find a better way? Maybe instead of doing that, use the chance to get to know him better with being a princess in your way?"
"But Mom!" Serenity whined as a boy. "I just want to stay single, I don't want a husband!"
It elicited some weird faces from servants before they realized it was Selene and Serenity. "That's enough Serenity, either shape up or return to being a princess and explaining this whole thing to Endymion yourself!"
"Fine!" Serenity cried and ran away into 'her' chambers and slammed the door shut. Luna strolled in a half hour later. "What do you want!"
"Time for your lessons." She beamed.
Serenity picked her up and slid her outside before locking her door shut against any more intrusions.
She fell asleep on the bed not long later, curled around her pillow instead of sleeping on it. She had never had this much down time in her life, she planned on enjoying it right now.