Hi everyone! First of all happy happy new year to everyone! I hope you enjoyed the holidays and that 2012 is going to be a good year to all of us (:

I would like to say a BIG thank you to my beat again for her wonderful job! Without you it won't be possible to update my story! (:

And a big thank you to you guys for your wonderful reviews! It makes me so happy to read your comments and to know that you enjoy my story! (:

loveinthebattlefield, TrisChiba : now more and more and more is coming (: they are getting closer ;)

sabina21, Jenbunny : More Helios in this chapter! And I have to tell you... I loved writing about that guy :D

Godschildtweety, Vampireluver23, CharmedSerenity3, adoore, SerentiyMoonGodness, Legendary Moon : Thank you! and here comes the next chapter!

mochahap : Yes, Senshi will come but not right now (:

nickybluejess : Don't be so sure they can't spend more time together ;)

midnight blue08 : Endy does not have any (: He is the Prince not an "official" warrior but well he has enough with being Prince plus Elysion ;) And we all know deep down that he is perfect as he is :D

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Chapter 8

The next few days were gray, cold, and glum. Those three words could describe the days perfectly for Serenity. She spent most of her time sitting on the windowsill, looking out the window at the garden below. Since Endymion and his Generals left, it had been raining almost nonstop. Like Mother Nature had felt her mood and was suffering with her, soaking the ground with her tears. Not that Serenity minded. She felt no urge to wander the colorful gardens or discover Earth's beauty. Not now at least.

Her thoughts returned time to time to the last meeting she had with the Prince. The feeling of his fingers on her body and his lips on hers was still very much alive in her mind, causing her body to shiver with unknown excitement. How could he just leave like that? Kissing her like that and then leaving without any explanation! She almost felt angry toward him for causing her so much confusion. It felt like being on an emotional roller coaster actually. In one second, she felt excited; her skin hot where he last touched her. In the next moment, she felt anger because he dared to leave just like that, and finally, worry. She wished now more then ever that her friends, the Senshi, could be with her to distract her worried thoughts from the battles the dark haired Prince might be fighting at that very moment.

The Queen and the King seemed calm as far as Serenity could see. However she noticed the King was joking less, and Gaia also seemed a bit more distant in the last few days, but she always managed to smile at Serenity assuringly. The young girl could only guess what the older woman might have been feeling now that her only son was on the battlefield. Gaia managed to distract herself very well most of the times with the preparation for the engagement party. Serenity already felt tired thinking about all the details the Queen wanted to finalize with her. The color of the tablecloths, the list of invitees, the dress she was supposed to wear, the color dedicated for the night. That was actually something new and interesting she had found out about Earth habits. At highly important events like engagement parties, wedding balls, and baby-shower parties, it was a habit for the Mistress to define the color of the party. All the invitees were supposed to wear something in that color for the occasion. This one tiny piece of information managed to distract Serenity's thoughts for a whole thirty minutes. She thought about it long and hard, but in the end she came up with nothing. All that she knew was what she wouldn't choose for sure. Silver and white. This topic lost her interest quite fast as well and she found herself back in her gloomy mood soon enough.

The only good thing that happened in the last few days was the fact she dared to call Molly a friend now. The young red-haired girl tried her best to cheer her up. She was always around with a cup of hot chocolate, a piece of vanilla-cake, or a gentle smile whenever she needed it the most. Serenity appreciated every minute she could spend with Molly, especially since the other servants at the Palace she could call neutral at best. Most of the time, they were quite hostile with her. Whenever she passed them while they were doing their chores, they were always throwing derogated glances at her and the moment they thought she was out of hearing distance, they turned to whisper about her. Serenity sometimes wondered if they had been doing the same before Endymion left and she had just never noticed, or if it too was a new habit.

Sighing finally, Serenity stood up from the windowsill. It was no use sitting there all day; it wouldn't solve any of her problems anyway. She needed a distraction badly, and with that in her mind, she left her room to look for the Queen. Just like her Aunt Queen Aphrodite, Queen Gaia could never say no to trips to the tailors.

As Serenity passed two servants cleaning the long floors, she caught one of the girls turning to the other one. Words like stuck-up, power-freak, and alien were the nicest she heard them using. Not even surprised anymore about the mean words passing between the servants, Serenity turned the corner to the library. In the last few rainy days, it was a habit of the Queen to spend her afternoons in the library, so her best chance to find her was in the bright room full with books. Stopping for a moment and placing a delicate smile on her face, Serenity opened the door only to lift her eyebrow in surprise in the next moment.

"Oh, I thought you decided to close yourself up in your rooms. You are rather boring dear, if I might say."

The delicate smile left Serenity's face immediately as she pressed her lips together in annoyance as the slender red-haired woman stood up from the chair she was sitting on.

"Lady Beryl. I thought you left already. Seeing as your reason for staying is no longer available." Serenity answered harshly. Her answer was a humorless laugh from the red-haired woman, which only made her even angrier.

"Why would I leave, little Princess? Obviously the Prince will return soon enough. And full with energy after he had to spend so much time in a stressful situation. He would need something exciting and interesting. Not something boring and naive" She said with a sneer on her lips.

Serenity hid her surprise and shock behind her mask. "Believe whatever you wish Lady Beryl. I am only afraid of you getting hurt in the end." She said with mocked worry. "Endymion seemed to care more about saying goodbye to someone naïve before he left, rather than looking for some excitement." She added, her blue eyes cold as she looked at the other woman.

Beryl glared at her with venom in her eyes. "I'm worried about you getting hurt in the end, little girl. He would care my welcome more than yours, I can assure you. I don't think you could ever give him what he needs after a few days of fighting. Believe me, I know by experience. Even IF you would be around, you couldn't give him that." She added with a grin.

Serenity frowned in confusion, her heart jumping with hurt. The answer to her question from before was suddenly crystal clear. This woman did not just wish to become her soon-to-be-husband's mistress, she already was. Or had been, at least. It was a surprisingly painful revelation. And honestly, it should not have been so painful. She really didn't know the black haired Prince that well yet. And that small kiss? Maybe it did not mean so much to him. She quickly closed her confused and somewhat hurt feelings away to be thought about more later. For the moment, something even more disturbing caught her attention. IF she would be around? Why she wouldn't be here? She frowned in confusion, but had no time to think about it long, as Beryl grinned at her again.

"Isn't it sad your fiancée didn't even care to spend time with you during your short appearance in his life? But at least he could say goodbye to you. That is such a relief" Beryl added, her voice full with venom.

Serenity felt pain and anger growing in her heart; thank God her mask was hiding it well. Somehow the woman in front of her seemed to find all her weak points. But she would rather die than let her see how much she actually managed to hurt her!

"It is indeed unfortunate we couldn't spend too much time together. But in the end, it seems I am the lucky one who he is to marry. Pity for you, Lady Beryl." Serenity said, the grin wide on her face as she turned on her heels to walk away. This woman simply made her feel so angry, something she thought she wasn't capable of. The red-haired woman's last sentences, however, made her very uncomfortable. Something did not feel right.

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Serenity decided it was useless to look for the Queen while she was so frustrated. Instead, she decided to return to her rooms to calm down a bit and go look for the Queen again later. Hopefully, with more success. When she entered the room, she was still shaking from anger. That... that bitch is the ugliest the meanest the most-

Her thoughts stopped suddenly when she heard a deep, masculine chuckle from behind. Her body froze, her eyes widened as she stood statue-still, not daring to move or turn around. There was someone in her rooms. For the very first time since she was on Earth, she felt real fear.

"Interesting thoughts, Your Highness. I would have never guessed a delicate lady like yourself could think something like that." The voice talking was deep and surprisingly calming. Never the less, it gave Serenity a start.

Slowly, she turned around, prepared for anything, only to find a silver haired man kneeling a few feet away from her. His head was bowed so she couldn't see his face, but she heard the smile in his smooth voice when he spoken a moment earlier. He was wearing a white cap, white pants, and white boots with golden motives on them. For a moment, she realized how fast she had gotten unused to the color she lived with for eighteen years. If the circumstances would have been different, she might have even rolled her eyes in annoyance. But the circumstances were as they were. She was in her room with a stranger kneeling in front of her. A dangerous stranger if he could actually read her mind?

Her eyes searched for the door. It was on the other side of the room, but to get there she must have run past the man kneeling a few feet away from the door. If only she could make him stand up and move farther from the door… She was pondering her options when the man in front of her, as if reading her mind, spoke again.

"Please do not fear me Your Highness. " He said, his voice serious but gentle, the playful smile leaving his voice. He did not move however, only kept kneeling with bowed head.

"Who are you?" Serenity asked, backing away from him until her back bumped into the desk. Either this was a weird dream, or she was in very real danger. How did a stranger with obvious mind-reading abilities get unnoticed into her room? Didn't Endymion say the Earth Palace's protection was even better then the protection on the Moon?

"I am Helios." The man finally said, but he didn't add any other comments, like his name itself should have explained everything. Well it did not.

"I... I am going to call the guards. Don't move! You have no idea who I am! If you hurt me-" Serenity tried to sound confident. Whoever this man was, mysteriously appearing in her room, he could not hurt her right? She was safe. She was the fiancée of the Earth Prince... she was the Princess of the Moon.

"I know who you are Your Highness. You do not need to fear me. I am here to protect you." Helios said, still unmoving kneeling on the floor.

"I don't know what you mean Mister. You have to leave. Prince Endymion would be very angry if he walked in and found me in danger." She said, hoping the man before her had no clue the Prince was far away at the west boarder at the moment. If she was lucky, this man was not dangerous just a bit crazy.

"You are absolutely right, Your Highness. That is exactly why I am here. Let me introduce myself. I am the High Priest of Elysion." Helios said, finally looking up her, golden eyes shining with mystery. Serenity stared at him in total confusion now. Couldn't he give any straight answers instead of fuzzy hints?

"Elysion?" She asked frowning.

"Yes. His Highness, the Prince, came to me before he left. He ordered me to guard you and make sure you were safe." Helios continued.

"Ordered you? Is Endymion the Prince of this 'Elysion' too? Is it on Earth?" Serenity tried to make sense to all the information she had heard, but it seemed the more this Helios talked, the more confused she got. She tried hard to remember something about Helios or Elysion from her studies, but ended up with nothing.

"It wouldn't be a hundred percent true saying Elysion is ON Earth" Helios said, his voice giving away the fact that he was smiling. "But it belongs to Earth. As the rightful owner of the Golden Crystal, His Highness, Prince Endymion, is the king there, seeing the last owner of the Golden Crystal, His Highness, Daren, passed away twenty years ago." Helios continued, his voice even and calm, like he was talking about the weather.

"King Daren? Endymion's grandfather?" Serenity asked, remembering the name from her studies. "But... What about King Damian?" She asked, sinking on the chair finally. This was just too confusing.

"The rulers of Earth aren't automatically the owner of the Golden Crystal." Helios said smiling, his golden eyes looking at her, like a wise, all-knowing grandfather would look at his young granddaughter. "But that is a long story you should hear from His Highness, the Prince. Now more importantly, and the reason for me being here, is your safety. You have to go to the Prince." He said finally, his voice, even his eyes, showing confidence.

Serenity looked at him in shock, not being able to speak for a long moment. It was obvious what Helios said was not a question, but she couldn't help but gasp at the silver haired priest in shock. "To the Prince? You mean… the camp?"

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Endymion looked around the camp site. Soldiers were finally doing the last moves needed to get the camp ready. This far, everything had gone smoothly. If these rebel troops were just as unorganized as his father told him they were, it will take no time to beat them back. The tents were standing in organized form, and now the soldiers were busy listening to Zoisite, who announced the timetable and rules for guarding.

Endymion glanced around in the dark, massaging the tired muscles on his neck. It took them a good sixteen hours riding to finally reach the camp side, another three hours to gather the soldiers who were at this side doing duties, and finally another four hours to build the camp. Without sleep for more than twenty-four hours, he and his Generals started to check the level of the soldiers and organized the training for them. They were mostly well qualified soldiers, but they needed some training. Now after more than forty-eight hours later, still not sleeping for even a moment, they were finally more or less ready. Now, all that he, the generals, and the soldiers needed was a good sleep before the surprise attack planned for the next morning. If all went well and Lady Fortune was on their side, with one huge attack, using the benefit of a surprise, they could beat the rebels back. He sighed again, taking a gulp from his tea. Chances were low that he could return home fast, but hope dies last, doesn't it?

It was only the second night away from home, and he already felt restless. It was an odd feeling. Usually it didn't really matter to him how long he had to be away from the Palace or how long a battle lasted, but now things were different. He actually wanted to be in the Palace. The last time he longed to be home was when he was eight and it was his very first time away from home on a camp side with his father. Back then, he wanted nothing more than be home, protected by his mother. It passed away with time as he grew older and he, at the age of sixteen, had thought this painful longing to be home had disappeared forever. And now, suddenly, he longed to be home again, but now it was for a very different reason. His eyes wandered up to sky, finding the bright full moon.

"Is something bothering you Endy?" Nephrite asked, sitting down next to the Prince, staring at the camp fire, the bright flames mirroring in his eyes.

"How are things going with the soldiers?" Endymion asked, ignoring his friend's question.

"They are pretty well trained, thank God." Zoisite answered for Nephrite, sitting down next to his friends. "I have just finished telling them their duties for the night. I made sure the guys fighting tomorrow would get long hours of rest."

"Good. The sooner we can go back, the better." Endymion nodded, turning his head around to get lost of the tensed up muscles.

"Aren't we restless?" Jedite smirked, with a mischievous look in his eyes. He earned a glare from Endymion. "I wonder why?" Jedite continued, grinning like a fool.

"Maybe because of the two days without sleep? That makes any NORMAL person tired." Nephrite glared at Jedite in annoyance, voice pressing on the word 'normal'.

"What are you trying to say? That I am a freak only because I am not dying from tiredness? Maybe you are not trained well enough if two days with no sleep makes you weak like a girl." Jedite snapped back, fire burning in his eyes.

"I am saying it is not normal you are joking around like a teenager in a situation like this, BOY" Nephrite said, the fire waking up in his eyes too, his voice getting louder and louder.

"What are you trying to say Animus? You think I am not mature enough for battle?" Jedite jumped up, glaring at the brown haired guy. Using the other's soldier name was a clear message for a challenge.

"You are a careless piece of-" Nephrite jumped up too, with angry brown eyes.

"Come on guys, go kill each other somewhere else." Zoisite rolled his eyes, pouring a cup of hot tea for himself. "You are giving me a headache." He added in complete calm.

"I beg your pardon! He clearly questioned my ability to be a General! I beg for justice!" Jedite shouted.

"Fine Ignigena! Grab your sword and show me what you can do, BOY" Nephrite snapped back.

"You egoistical, good for nothing-" Jedite shouted back, grabbing his sword as well.

"Like I asked before, would you be so kind as to go kill each other at the other side of the camp?" Zoisite said, slightly annoyed. Kuznite and Endymion sat around the fire, also perfectly calm, Endymion staring into the fire and Kunzite watching him with narrowed eyes. They did not bother to calm the two hotheads down, as it was usual for Jedite to earn one of his friends' anger quickly with his carefree, boyish manner. But it was also obvious the five men loved each other like brothers. Soon enough, those two would also come back laughing and joking like the best of friends that they were.

When the two left, Zoisite sighed, putting down his now empty cup. "It is never boring with Jedite... No matter how much I enjoy their games, I am actually tired from not sleeping for days. If you don't need me anymore Endy, I would return to my tent?" When his friend nodded in return, Zoisite stood up yawning. "See you all tomorrow morning. I advise you all to go get rest as well." He said, turning away and walking toward his tent.

Once Zoisite left as well, Kunzite spoke up for the first time that evening. "So... you wanna talk about it?" He asked, not glancing at the Prince, but instead looking into the fire as well.

"Talk about what?" Endymion asked calmly.

"Helios?" was all Kunzite asked.

"Can't we let this topic go?" Endymion sighed after a long moment of silence.

"I'm sorry, but you can't be surprised it'd astonished me. Helios, the High Priest of Elysium, getting a strict order from you to keep an eye on her? It really seems that there are deep feelings involved here from your side." Kunzite said.

"She is going to be the future Queen of Earth. She is my responsibility." Endymion said matter of factly, massaging his temper tiredly.

"But Helios? Come on Endymion, you know as well as I do that Elysion has nothing to do with Queens of Earth. Not even with the Kings, in the case that they are not the owner of the Golden Crystal. I've never even met Helios before. I can't, since he is in Elysion and I can't ever go there. But I know very well that the only purpose of Elysion's highest Priest is protecting its King. Protecting physically and emotionally. Meaning Helios must think if something happens with the Princess, that it would affect you greatly. Something he, as the High Priest, can't let happen..." Kunzite said, staring at the Prince, whose face stayed calm, the whole time his eyes fixed on the fire.

"You are thinking too much Kunzite. Helios has to do whatever I ask him to do." Endymion said easily.

"But you rarely ask anything of him." Kunzite probed again.

"And now I did. Kunzite, let it go already. Even Helios didn't ask as much about this as you do." Endymion said, finally looking at his friend with narrowed and meaningful eyes. The message was clear. He was not going to talk more about it.

"If you say there is nothing more to it..." Kunzite said finally. Endymion nodded and stood up. "It's time we finally get some sleep. Goodnight, my friend." He said, turning around and missing the small smile playing on Kunzite's lips as he watched his friend walk away.

Nephrite and Jedite choice that moment to walk back into the campsite, laughing together. They were sweaty and dirty, but more relaxed than before. Seeing Kunzite, they lifted an eyebrow in surprise. "What is so funny?" Nephrite asked.

Kunzite shook his head, still staring after the leaving Prince. "The biggest weakness is when you do not realize your weakness at all." He said.

Jedite blinked surprisedly and exchanged a confused look with Nephrite. The brown haired man shrugged. "Kunz, you need sleep. You're making no sense." Jedite said finally.

And that was it for chapter 8! I really hope you guys liked it! As always pelase el tem know what you think it REALLY motivates me to keep writing! (: