It had been two days since Amaya had betrayed him, and Jadeite was finally coming to understand that fact. She had never loved him and had only used him to get to the Master. Knowing this, however, did nothing to change how he felt about her. He still loved her, and he didn't understand why. It would be so much easier to move on if he could just stop feeling these emotions whenever he thought of her.

Zoisite had come to fetch him early this morning, and escorted him down to the piano room. This was the first time he had left his room since being confined to it, and it was a relief to leave it if only for a moment. According to Zoisite, he was going to take care of putting the barrier in place to block Amaya from entering, then he would begin working with Jadeite. Jadeite didn't understand why he needed to be present for this first task, but figured it was simply more efficient to escort him here first.

Jadeite stood awkwardly in the middle of the room while Zoisite seated himself at the piano. "You are welcome to sit if you want," Zoisite offered, "this may take a while."

Jadeite nodded, but made his way over to one of the windows instead. He leaned against the frame and tried to focus on something outside, something that wasn't Amaya. The gardens, the fields of grass stretching out from the palace, the forest. The sky was cloudless today and the sun would shine down warmly in a few hours.

Soft piano music began to fill the room, and Jadeite found the sounds relaxing as he looked out on the grounds. Slowly the music began to pick up in tempo and Jadeite looked back at Zoisite briefly while he played. His eyes were closed, concentrating fully on the spell he was invoking. It always amazed Jadeite that he could play such fast and complicated pieces without ever looking at his hands.

His attention returned to the outdoors and it was then that Jadeite noticed a shimmering around the palace. The result of Zoisite's playing, the barrier being put in place that would block Amaya's presence. The shimmering wall began up high and then slowly worked its way down and around the palace. Once in place, it wouldn't be visible or effect anyone besides Amaya, or so it was believed.

Jadeite was getting a headache. It began as a dull ache, but slowly grew with the music until it was an almost unbearable pounding. He pressed his hands to his temples, trying to block out the pain. Sweat began to form on his brow and he slide down to the floor as the pounding refused to subside.

The instant that the magical barrier was in place, Jadeite felt a sudden, sharp pain, greater than all the rest. It was enough to cause him to scream, and that finally caught Zoisite's attention.

"Jadeite!"

The pain was subsiding now, thankfully. Jadeite thought for a moment that he would pass out if it had continued any longer. His hands fell from his temples and braced himself against the floor as he panted. What had happened?

"Jadeite?" Zoisite's hands were on his shoulders, trying to help him up. "Are you alright?"

"I think so," he whispered. "My head..."

"The barrier is fully in place now, so you should be fine."

Slowly Jadeite managed to get himself into a sitting position on the floor. "What happened?" he asked, wishing the Zoisite would just explain what was going on.

"Mio was still connected to you after all. The barrier broke the link. So long as you are separated, she can't control you. Now we'll have to work on erasing the spell completely."

Still connected? "You mean, she could have still made me do things?"

Zoisite nodded, "yes, but not any more. As long as you remain in the palace."

At least being confined to the palace was better than his chambers. Jadeite struggled to his feet, Zoisite releasing him once he was stable. "So now what?" he asked.

"Now we need to remove the last traces of the spell so that Mio won't be able to control you if you ever come in contact with her again. As of right now, I can allow you to return to partial duties, so long as you stay within the boundaries of the barrier, if you feel ready for that."

Jadeite nodded. He wanted to get back to regular life again, and it wasn't as if he needed to leave the palace often anyway. "Thank you."

Zoisite returned to the piano and then gestured for Jadeite to join him. Jadeite stood beside the bench, waiting for Zoisite's instructions.

"What I'm going to do," he explained, "is simply look for traces of the spell, so that I can tell what we are dealing with. I need you to close your eyes and try to clear you mind. Focus on the music."


Venus knelt on her knee before Queen Serenity briefly before being told to rise. "My Queen, I have questions for you concerning Sailor Senshi other than the four of us."

"Besides the Guardian Senshi?" she asked, and at the same time signalling with her hand that the Throne Room should empty. It would probably be best that this discussion be confidential, and Venus wondered if in fact the Queen did know more than she was letting on.

Venus waited for the room to clear, and when it did the Queen stood and approached the Senshi. "What are your questions?" she asked softly.

"I know of the Senshi of the Outer System, of course, but are there others?"

"Others?" The Queen became contemplative. "Why do you ask?"

She was hiding information, Venus was sure of it, but for what purpose? "You know of the resent event on Earth, correct?"

Queen Serenity nodded. "A girl attempted to kidnap the King."

Venus nodded. "What has not yet been divulged is that it was a Senshi besides ourselves that defeated Mio."

"Go on," the Queen prompted when Venus paused.

"At first I thought that the Princess herself had changed forms, but that was not the case. There was a blinding white light, but I could see her sailor fuku, blue and pink with lace. She had blond pigtails as well. From what I understand, this description is not consistent with that of any of the Outer Senshi, so I am at a loss as to who she could be."

While the Queen looked as though she was hiding information before, she looked truly confused now. "I know of no Senshi of that description," she said. Venus was disappointed initially, as the mystery had not been unravelled. "Allow me a few days time and I may have more information for you," the Queen added.

Venus bowed politely in thanks. "I appreciate the help, my Queen. May I ask one more thing?"

"Yes, of course."

"Since we do not know who this Senshi is, is it possible that she could be a threat of some kind? She appeared quite powerful, more so than any of us. Is it possible for a Senshi to become dangerous to others?"

The Queen nodded slowly, "it is possible. You would be right to take precautions, even if she appears to be on your side for now."

Venus bowed. "We will." As she turned to leave, the queen stopped her by calling her name. Venus paused and turned again.

"You have always been the most devoted of the Senshi, Venus," Queen Serenity said. "Please continue to watch over her, but do not forget that you are allowed your own life as well."

Venus shook her head, for once disagreeing with the Queen. "I plan to always watch over her, my Queen, and I won't interfere with the other Senshi if they so desire their own personal lives, but I don't think that is meant to be my fate." Venus had been devoted to this mission since before her memory began, and it wasn't something she could easily put behind her. After all, what kind of life was the Queen thinking of? Something like what Mercury seemed to be heading towards? Courting and perhaps marrying? It wasn't something that Venus ever planned on doing.

"How can you be so sure of your fate? You are still very young."

The Queen's words did manage to make her pause, but only for a moment. "I am certain, My Queen."


Life once again returning to normal was a relief for Mercury. While she certainly had no regrets about being one of the Princess' guardians, she preferred it when she didn't have to act on her duties. Venus would probably scold her, saying that a Senshi must always be on guard and ready to fight, but Mercury just didn't see it that way.

Her share of the preparations for the wedding were finished, early, the way she preferred to do things. Now she was helping out the others where she could. Oddly enough, she seemed to be asking Kunzite most of the time. She supposed that she just enjoyed being around him, something else Venus, or at very least Mars, would argue with her.

Kunzite was... interesting. That was the best word she had to describe him. He radiated power, and upon first meeting him, he had been rather intimidating to speak to. Mercury learned quickly however, that he rarely used his power. For instance, she knew that he was a more skilled fighter than Nephrite, but Kunzite had only used what was minimally required of him. He thought about things, everything, before he acted it seemed. Jupiter was wrong, however. Mercury most certainly wasn't attracted to him. He was just a friend, that's all.

She found him in the hall to be used for the wedding dance. He and Jupiter seemed to be tag teaming as coordinators while the rest of the palace staff worked to decorate. He appeared quite busy, and so Mercury decided that she would rather not bug him at this particular moment. She turned to leave, but Kunzite caught sight of her and motioned for her to wait a minute.

After dealing with the current question of where a particular vase should go, he had a brief word with Jupiter who took over for the both of them, sending Mercury a wink. She really did have the wrong idea.

"Everything is looking great," Mercury commented when Kunzite joined her. "It's coming together well."

"Thank you. What brings you here?"

Mercury didn't really have a real answer for that. He obviously didn't need help. "Just thought I would check by to see if you needed an extra pair of hands, but I see you have many today."

Kunzite nodded and took a moment to survey the work. "I think everything will be find here, and to be honest, Jupiter is doing most of the work. I feel in the way, she kind of shooed me over here."

Mercury knew that wasn't the reason, but she kept that to herself. "I'm sure she didn't mean it that way."

Kunzite turned back to Mercury and he was wearing that smile again. She suddenly felt like there were butterflies flying around in her stomach, and she couldn't understand why. "I hope," he said, speaking slowly, thoughtfully, "that you'll save at least one dance for me after the wedding?"

Mercury blinked a few times in response. The question had come rather suddenly, and she didn't really know how to reply to it.

"Unless, you're bringing a date, perhaps you already have someone on the Moon." His face didn't disclose anything, but there was something in his voice that told Mercury that he would be disappointed if that were the case.

She shook her head, finally able to speak. "No no, there's no one. I really don't have time for that sort of thing, being one of the Princess' guardians and all. Not that I mean that you do or anything!" She stopped and covered her face partially with her hand, having embarrassed herself well enough by this point. "What I mean to say is that a dance would be fine."

Kunzite just smiled, apparently not offended at her comment. "I look forward to it."


The initial probes Zoisite did with his music were troubling. Mio had managed to get her claws into Jadeite quickly and effectively. He didn't voice these concerns to Jadeite right away. He only told him that it would be a few days work at least. A few weeks or months might have been more accurate, and that was if it was at all possible to revoke the spell.

After Jadeite left the first day, Zoisite had stayed at his piano most of the night. It was the first time that he was required to draw on all his knowledge of spells and magic that he had.

The second day, Zoisite discovered that there was more than just a powerful spell in place, Mio had it blocked with a sort of barrier, not entirely unlike the one he himself had put around the palace. He figured that it was triggered with a word or phrase, and that a normal state of consciousness could be returned similarly, but it seemed that he wouldn't be able to get through to the spell itself without that word, or more research.

Zoisite spend the next two days in the library. Jadeite often accompanied him, saying that the wedding preparations were mostly finished and that they didn't need him for anything. Zoisite did his best to not worry Jadeite, but he could see the distress in his eyes.

Finally, on the fifth day, Jadeite actually asked. "Don't lie to me any more, how bad is it?"

They were sitting in the piano room, and Zoisite's research had told him very little. He told Jadeite the truth then, that as it was, there wasn't much he could do. Jadeite could continue his duties, but they couldn't take any risks in Mio getting in contact with him again.

Jadeite took it rather well, all things considered. He was probably expecting this, Zoisite figured. "So, I don't leave the palace," he said, after taking a few minutes to digest the news.

Zoisite nodded. "While I am not fully certain, Mio would have to be near you to use the trigger. Those words she said to you before 'the world went all fuzzy'."

"I can't remember then."

"If that's the case, then you would be fine to travel anywhere so long as she is not around. Unfortunately we don't know where she is, or even if she is still alive."

Jadeite nodded. "What about the Moon?" he asked. "She couldn't teleport there, not with the shield they use to protect the Moon. It would be fine for me to go there, right?"

Zoisite thought on this for a moment. "I would think so, but I would have to speak to the queen first of course. She would need to know everything that I do first."

Jadeite leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes. He remained like that for sometime, and Zoisite just let him be. He turned back to his piano and played a few softer pieces, not for invoking spells of any kind, but simply to play.

After the third piece ended, Jadeite finally spoke. "I'm such a failure."

"You're not a failure," Zoisite replied, turning to face Jadeite once again. He was more or less in the same position. "We didn't see it coming any better than you did."

Jadeite shook his head. Zoisite was relieved to see that he wasn't crying, but his expression was hardly a picture of calm either. "I should have ignored her, focused on the Master.."

"Ignoring someone you're attracted to isn't exactly the easiest thing in the world, especially not when she's trying to lure you in. You need to stop blaming yourself and remember that it was Mio, and not you, that caused this to happen."

Jadeite sighed. "I still love her. Even after everything she's done, I still love her."

"I know. It won't be something easy for you to overcome."

"Do you even know what I am feeling?"

It came out as harsh, but Zoisite knew that Jadeite didn't really mean it that way, and Jadeite had an excellent point as well. "No, I don't."

His response seemed to puzzle Jadeite at first, as if he had been expecting Zoisite to claim otherwise.

"Have you spoken to the Master since that day?"

Jadeite shook his head, his facing showing the discomfort he felt at that suggestion.

"Perhaps you should, he might be able to help you more than I can."

"What do you mean?"

Zoisite gave a soft, encouraging smile. "He's more familiar with the emotions you are feeling than I am."