Actions speak louder.
Title: The Silence
Theme: Words (#4) – theme taken from 101_Kisses themes list
Genre: Drama
Rating: PG
"In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies,
but the silence of our friends."
- Martin Luther King, Jr.
The room was poorly ventilated. Too many old men littered the room, fanning themselves and sitting limply in uncomfortable, un-cushioned chairs. As the morning hours passed, the day's heat warmed the inside of the meeting room like an oven.
Endymion was adamant. He would not let them leave until they saw reason.
"The moon has never tried to conquer us. The moon is not 'monitoring' us. They care for our well-being and nothing else. They are a peaceful people!" he stressed, slapping his hand down on the stone table once more.
A high advisor sighed complacently. "Highness, we've been through this. While the moon has never indicated ill will, Beryl brings up a good point. Why do they care for us at all? Surely, everyone is self-serving at the heart of themselves."
Kunzite slipped into the room quietly, followed by the other shitennou. They were unnoticed for minutes, before the King acknowledged them.
"And the shitennou? What do they think of the situation?"
Endymion had not noticed them until then. Their presence alone comforted him. They knew his love for the princess. He spoke often enough of her goodness and his few experiences on the moon.
If anything, they would be able to convince his father to think more seriously on the matter. They would buy Endymion time. With more time, he would be able to-
"The shitennou do not know enough to speak wisely on the matter." Kunzite was replying to the king in a way that surprised Endymion so much he could not prevent the, "What?" from escaping his lips.
Kunzite repeated himself. "The shitennou do not feel they are knowledgeable enough about today's meeting to participate in it."
The king raised an eyebrow. "You have no opinion on the matter? No, significant input?"
"No, sire."
A heavy silence settled upon the room.
"And that is the point!" A fiery-tempered middle-aged advisor stood. "If even the shitennou do not know enough of the moon, we know even less!"
Endymion looked as the shitennou. He was confused. He commanded them with his eyes to say something. Anything. Anything to change the course of where this meeting would take them.
Nephrite followed the conversation; Zoisite looked at the ground; Jadeite only met his eyes sparingly; and Kunzite. Kunzite stared back with no remorse.
When no one spoke, the king sighed. "Tomorrow, we will begin drafting requests for the moon to cease their monitoring of us. We will await their response before taking further action."
The older men filed out of the room, until only Endymion and his guardians remained. The former sat upon a chair, his head limp in his hands.
"You. Said nothing," he accused. "You've met Serenity. And yet, you said nothing."
When Kunzite did not reply, Jadeite spoke. "We felt there was nothing of relevance to say."
"Nothing of relevance?" Endymion was on his feet. "We're about to go to war and you have nothing of relevance to say?"
Endymion continued ranting and raving about standing beside him and support and accusing them of things they would never want to be guilty of. He stopped when he realized they were not responding at all.
They stood shoulder to shoulder, like a wall, against his allegations.
"Say something!" he demanded.
Each of them met his eyes, and he despaired as he encountered the last set, emotionlessly determined.
"Say something!"
And still. The silence stretched on.
end