"Some pray to marry the man they love,
My prayer will somewhat vary;
I humbly pray to heaven above
That I love the man I marry."
Rose Pastor Stokes,
My Prayer
The Man I Marry
Chapter Nine
"No, she couldn't have heard him right. None of the heroes in her dreams had ever said anything like that."
The White Moon Palace was the heart of a vast and sprawling valley. Its grand pearl white dome and soaring minarets stood tall and regal against the hazy purple backdrop of the Thalusian Mountains. Two great rivers, Luthien and Ilyon, flowed down from the high peaks in shining, lazily twisting ribbons of silver. Long white highroads stretched out in all four directions, extending through the bustling Lunarian capital and beyond.
The Moon Princess was taking the Prince out on a grand tour along with the Inner Senshi and the two Generals. As of the moment, the royal party was riding through a sunny gold-green meadow as they explored the vast lands surrounding the Palace.
The Eastern General Jadeite gave himself a hearty pat on the back for broaching the "grand tour" idea to the Princess, ultimately enjoying the exercise as he marveled contentedly at the beautiful landscape. The sun peeked behind golden tipped clouds as a playful breeze threw upon the meadow gusty wafts of moon lilies along with a shower of translucent leaves. Slivers of mist and dew hung in the air, like glittering wings of dragonflies in the light. The beauty of nature indeed.
And speaking of things of beauty…Jadeite sidled his mount closer to the raven-haired goddess riding a bit ahead of him. She had long shadow dark tresses and large almond shaped eyes the color of crushed purple velvet. Her face was broad at the forehead and pointed at the chin, like a cat's, accentuating her refined features. She had effortlessly taken his breath away. He cleared his throat. "Mind if I join you?"
The young girl simply dismissed him with an icy amethyst glance.
The fair-haired General raised a mental eyebrow. "Brr. Getting pretty cold out here." He remarked in a cheerful tone.
She was self-assured, holding his stare when most women would have coyly looked away. That alone intrigued him. His lips curved into a wicked grin, one lock of sun-streaked hair falling carelessly over his forehead. No woman with functioning nerve endings could really ignore the fact thatthis particular mancould melt polar ice caps with that smile. "I'm Jadeite."
Rae had half a mind to push the loathsome lecher off his horse, but Marsian dignity prevailed. "I'm sorry. You seem to have mistaken me for someone who actually cares." She responded with a brittle smile. Inwardly, the Marsian Princess fumed. If he thinks just because he's some low-life general from that backwards planet, women will be throwing themselves at him, he is sadly mistaken.
She was caustic. She was disdainful. She was vicious. He was smitten. Jadeite ignored her frigid brush-off, wanting to see another angry flash of amethyst fire in her eyes. "And you are?"
"Leaving." She replied snappishly as she urged her own mount to a brisk canter, leaving him to stare at her waist length tresses as they fanned behind her in the breeze.
"It was nice to meet your acquaintance as well!" He called after her sarcastically. Females…
"Losing your touch?" The Prince Endymion asked as he came up beside the Eastern General seething with the usual cheerful disposition of a dark storm cloud.
"Can't you see? She is absolute putty in my hands!" Jadeite joked good-naturedly. "It's good to know you're still your usual ray-of-sunshine self." He couldn't fail but comment on the Prince's overwhelmingly forbidding mood.
"Well, you see, I have this little deranged-princess-stalker problem that I just can't seem to rid myself of." Endymion's voice lowered to a dangerous growl as they both caught sight of the Moon Princess making sickeningly sweet googly eyes at him a few paces off. Spending five minutes with the woman had felt like an eternity. The Prince shook his head. "I was stupid of me to think that-" He stopped short. …That she'd be different.
A sudden vision of Serenity as she'd been when he first met her smote him. After an initial shyness, she was soon bubbling over with news and excitement and brimming with the joy of life. And Endymion didn't really feel any particular joy in his own life. He'd spent most of his days worrying about the kingdom and the people. She had transmitted some of her own joy to him, and he'd been enchanted. She'd been as bright and pleasant as a spring morning - and gorgeous, too. He'd wanted to marry her then and there and bed her at once.
But his so-called enchantment hadn't lasted long. He still wanted to bed her-he was a man, after all-but he didn't quite relish the idea of living with her. Each shy sugary smile and each flutter of her large doe eyes had only filled him with more and more dread and distaste. "And thanks to your stupid ideas, I get to be stuck with her for the whole blasted day."
"No thanks necessary, my friend. As you well know, it is my mission in life to make your life a tortured hell." Jadeite replied in jest. Evidently, the Princess has been harboring this colossal crush on Endymion for quite some time. She gazes so adoringly at him, Jadeite was oftentimes surprised that she didn't actually have eyes the shape of hearts.
"I'm going to kill you." Endymion glowered threateningly,
"I don't see why I am at fault here." Jadeite protested. "You would have to spend time with her sooner or later. And all things considered, I don't understand how you can possibly complain. She's an outstandingly exquisite specimen practically throwing herself at you! I say thank your lucky stars and seize the day!"
"She is nothing but a shallow, googoo-eyed brat. I fail to see anything worth seizing." Endymion retorted coldly.
"You also fail to remember the she is your betrothed. " Jadeite reminded, "And the White Moon Princess to boot. The daughters of the Royal House of the White Moon are the most powerful enchantresses in the galaxy. She is practically the next ruler of the whole solar system!"
"That doesn't mean I have to like her." Endymion snapped crankily.
"Actually, stud, that's exactly what it means." Jadeite countered matter-of-factly. He then craned his neck, deciding he needed reinforcements. Jadeite rolled his eyes as he caught sight of Nephrite, who usually took the role as the Voice of Reason, lagging behind them much too busy being the ladies' man as he kept two of the Senshi company. Sighing, Jadeite faced the irate Prince once again with a wry smile. "Look, since Nephrite over there is much too preoccupied chit-chatting with the ladies, I'm going to have to be the one to break this to you. I know you have this whole absurd anti-women thing, but the whole Kingdom is at stake here, and not just your pathetic excuse of a love life. Be the charmer I pray to the gods is still in there somewhere and do what you came here to do. Just court the girl and get it bloody over with."
Endymion paused. "I hate it when you start to make sense."
"Not as half as much as I do, I'm sure."
Just then, a panicked neigh filled the meadow followed by the frightened scream of the Princess and the sound of thundering hooves.
Serenity wandered quite a bit ahead of the group, a jumble of emotions rocketing through her insides like shooting stars. The Senshi had taken the hint, and held back, leaving her alone to sift through her thoughts. Allowing her silvery dappled mare, Halcyon, to graze and meander where she will, Serenity resolved to putting her scattered wits into some semblance of order. Her frame of mind alternated between hopeful adoration and utter dejection, but with such rapidity that she couldn't seem to catch hold of an emotion and stick with it. She was as confused as ever.
Serenity turned back to glance at the subject of her utter bafflement, catching him in quiet conversation with one of his generals. She watched, fascinated, as he negotiated the rolling terrain, looking magnificent on his big black gelding. She was struck, not for the first time, by how handsome he was. Honestly, the Senshi, even Rae, have this tendency to get a bit fluttery eyed and breathy when he's around.
There was no denying that when they married, she'd at least have a husband who appealed to her on a physical level. She had secretly feared that her future husband might be one those foppish sorts. Truth be told, the notion of a soft bellied, card playing, snuff taking prig of a husband didn't appeal to her much. But when she'd set her sights on Endymion and recognized in his tanned face and trim body a man who was unquestionably physically fit, she had been rather more encouraged than not.
Until she realized he was a complete icicle.
Early on in the trip, she and Endymion had drifted away from each other primarily because she didn't want to further annoy Prince "Thundercloud" - not for his sake, but for hers. She simply wasn't sure how many more of his impassive gazes and black moods she could take. Their brief conversations had been dreadfully civil and trivial. He was extremely reluctant to tender any personal information whatsoever. But then, they had barely met. Surely, his standoffish ways will pass. They were to be married, for crying out loud!
Polite, he most certainly was - agonizingly so. And cold, and distant and she may perhaps never understand why he couldn't be just a little bit more affable. He thoroughly lacked even a smidgeon of a sense of humor and possessed a countenance that showed as much animation as a stone statue.
Simply put, things were not going as planned. And she was rapidly running out of ideas.
Suddenly, an angry hiss came from the grass, alarmingly close. Black scales glittering, the viper raised its head, exposing its crimson tinged belly. It lunged towards Halcyon's legs with lightning speed, bared fangs spitting venom. In a flurry of hooves, the frantic mare dashed through meadow with a ringing neigh as Serenity clung on for dear life. She could faintly hear the shouts and the rumble of hoof beats as her companions hotly pursued the runaway horse.
Driven by the firm grip of fear, Halcyon obeyed none of Serenity's panicked commands, doing her best to part company with her mistress as she bucked, twisted and snapped. Heart thundering, Serenity clutched the reins, desperately seeking to keep her precarious perch on the saddle.
Just then the dark blur of a thundering stallion swept round the bend ahead of them, sending Halcyon into a full state of equine fury. Rearing back on her haunches, she attempted to tumble Serenity over her back and down to the ground. Serenity yanked frantically at the reins, the world around her vanishing into a dizzying rush of terror.
As if from a great distance, she heard a shout. Then he was there, looming up in front of the horse, her tall, stalwart young prince, risking the danger of becoming knocked senseless by Halcyon's deadly hooves. Strong hands shot out, managing to gain a purchase on the mare's bridle. Before she could comprehend what was happening, the horse had somehow gentled beneath her. And in the next breath, those same strong hands were lifting her out of the saddle.
She didn't realize how terrified she was until she was on her feet. She began to tremble so badly, her knees threatened to give way beneath her. She thought she would have slumped to the ground if not for her rescuer's strong hold on her shoulders.
When she dared to glance up at him, she found she could no longer breathe at all. Endymion's tousled ebony locks fell across his forehead, his eyes were the hue of midnight, his jaw lean and strong, his mouth generous, sensitive. His shoulders seemed broad enough to blot out the sun.
It was as though every fantasy she'd ever dreamed in her lonely chambers back at the Palace had suddenly sprung to life before her, every hero who'd ever carried her to safety, every knight who'd swooped her up upon his charger, every gladiator who'd battled to the death in her honor.
"Are you all right?" He inquired.
"Yes." She managed to whisper.
"You're not going to faint, are you?"
She shook her head. It was just like in her dreams, this tender concern. She stared deep into those dark-fringed eyes and waited for more.
"You are such an idiot!"
Serenity blinked. "Wh-what?"
"I said you are such a little idiot!" Endymion lectured, all of his pent up frustration bursting out from him.
Serenity's brow furrowed. No, she couldn't have heard him right. None of the heroes in her dreams had ever said anything like that.
The other members of the riding party had begun to arrive as Endymion released her and stepped back, scowling. " Have you lost your wits? What did you think you were doing? A little slip of a girl like you-"
"I am not a slip of a girl." Serenity said indignantly. She would have liked to draw herself to her full height but unfortunately, she was already there and she barely reached his shoulder. Her cheeks flushed a deep scarlet, as she attempted to hide her chagrin through a veil of icy dignity. "And you, sir, are ungallant."
"Ungallant? I just saved your pretty neck!"
"Yes, but a true gentleman would be far more chivalrous. I would wager that no knight would ever have scolded a damsel in distress."
"Probably not, but I would have taught my damsel to manage her horse better and not wait around to be rescued. All that heavy armor, you know. I might not have been able to move fast enough to get there in time."
Now he was making fun of her, the wretch. Serenity sniffed and regarded him in quiet reproach. First, she had complained about his utter lack of talent in the art of scintillating conversation and now, she sorely wished he would just shut his trap.
"Endymion." Nephrite called out warningly a few paces away, where he, Jadeite and the Senshi had converged to watch the spectacle unfold.
The Prince ignored him and let fly another barbed remark. "What? Not a word of thanks for my daring rescue? Oh, of course. You had it all under control when I came along." He turned to Halcyon, who was now nibbling idly at grass shoots. Patting her smooth neck, he remarked, "Well, at least I'm sure you're grateful. How do you put up with such an air-headed mistress?"
All thoughts of romantic rescues evaporating rapidly, Serenity crossed her arms over her chest as she glared daggers at him. Knowing Halcyon to be suspicious of strangers, she hid a smile as the dappled mare swung her head around and nipped savagely at the Prince's arm.
"Ow!" Endymion exclaimed, warily drawing back from the temperamental mare.
"Oops. Watch out." Serenity said, tongue in cheek.
"Females!" Endymion muttered in dark disgust as he spun on his heel and started to stalk off towards his waiting steed, only pausing long enough to give Nephrite instructions about taking charge of that "ungrateful hoyden."
For one appalled moment, Serenity wasn't certain whether he meant her or the horse. But the tall, dark haired General came forward to gather up Halcyon's reins. Meanwhile, the Inner Senshi crowded around her with Lyta offering to share her mount.
Standing stock still, the Moon Princess fumed, trembling with suppressed rage as she glared holes through the Prince's back.
On they way back to the Palace, the women rode ahead. There was no effort to mingle now and everybody was ominously quiet. Bringing up the rear, the three men rode silently, until finally Jadeite couldn't take it anymore.
"Didn't we just discuss this? Has all common sense dribbled out your ears?" Jadeite demanded in a harsh whisper. "The whole Alliance declaring war on us: not good, remember? Did you experience short term memory loss or are you just plain daft?"
Endymion shrugged offhandedly. "She was getting on my nerves."
"Fine." Nephrite replied evenly. "But was it absolutely necessary to enrage her? You should have just kept quiet and walked away."
"Exactly my point." Jadeite added. " Just humor her. It won't kill you to try to be Prince Charming for once. Couldn't you just wait until you were married to introduce her to your evil twin?"
Endymion's grip on the reins tightened as a flash of those shining blue eyes gazing up at him invaded his memory. "I see no point in playing a charade." He wasn't proud of himself for rescuing her, it was merely his duty. A man did his duty, and he was a man. It was that simple. But for the gods' sakes, she had gawked at him like he was bloody Hercules!
Endymion scoffed inwardly. If anything, he was definitely no hero. And he simply cannot stomach pretending to be something he's not. That would only encourage those fancy-filled notions that have taken hold in Serenity's brain and she will most probably end up waist deep in trouble bringing about the apocalypse, no doubt. And then he'd have to rescue her. Again.
Damn it all! It was just his luck to get stuck with a fruit loop for a betrothed.
"Indeed, you're all devil-may-care now. But seeing as you've actively provoked her to despise your guts, may I ask how you intend to survive tonight's Ball?" Nephrite inquired, gazing at him expectantly.
"A Ball? " A sick feeling started to grow in the pit of Endymion's stomach.
"Aye, your own Welcoming Ball, you dolt." Jadeite confirmed. "This very evening."
Author's Notes:
Thanks to everyone for having the patience to keep following this story! Well...(Nervous sigh) I know youall waitedfor this andexpected a lot, so I hope this valentine treat was to everyone's satisfaction. Please, guys, send me a review… Please...(Hopeful, puppy-dog look)
I'll try to update soon. Really!
Happy Valentine's!
Keth