A/N- So I just wanted to let everyone know that the next update probably won't be for a while. The next few weeks are going to be super busy for me so I won't be writing as much. I'll try and get a sneak peak out for reviewers as soon as possible. So, for now, I hope you enjoy this chapter. I'm not leaving you with a huge cliffy cause that would just be mean...
It seemed as though everyone in the kingdom had arrived at the front steps of the castle by eleven the next morning. Darien's announcement was not for another hour and yet hordes of people were outside. Large stands with canopies had been set up for the elite class to sit and relax and stay out of the sun. All others were standing or sitting wherever they could. The women of Drake all had fans and were chatting excitedly while the men stood in small groups. The large balcony at the front of the castle had been decorated with the royal insignia of a dragon breathing fire and grasping a crescent moon in one clawed hand and a crown in the other. I never understood just how much the moon goddess and her priestesses meant to these people but I was slowly beginning to understand. A few of the elite families had been invited to sit on the balcony where Darien would be making his announcement and I had made sure Beryl was one of them. She was just down the hall from me, constantly checking her appearance and chatting quite excitedly with Emerald.
"I can't believe that witch believes Endymion will be announcing his decision to court her today." Mina hissed. "I swear if she ever becomes queen, I'll leave."
"And what's the chance of that happening?" Lita asked. "I doubt even the rebels want her as queen."
"Anyway, think of what her face will look like when Darien makes his announcement." I replied.
"O, I cannot wait. Are you sure we can't have someone sitting in front of her to draw it for us?" Mina pouted.
"I wish we could." Lita muttered.
At a quarter to 12, Darien finally made his way down the long hall. He was dressed in a black suit with a black and red cape flowing down the back. He had no sword strapped to his side, although I noticed Malachite carrying two. For once Darien looked like a king, a man ready to defend his people in the decisions he made, not his actions on the battle field. When those of us who would be on the balcony saw Darien, we all made our way to our seats. I would remain inside, however. As the last of the elites took their seats, the whole courtyard hushed into a silence. Darien smiled at me once behind the closed doors before a servant opened them and he stepped out on the balcony.
"My people of Drake, thank you for coming today. I know I have called you here last second, but my announcement simply could not wait till the next ball or large ceremony. Certain feelings and events evoke a sense of urgency, and never have I felt quite so impatient to make my decision known before. It has been nearly three years since the attack on my family and I was crowned king. I know many of you have wondered when I would find a queen, if I would ever find a queen. Well today I come before you not only as your king, but also as a man who has had his heart stolen. I do not want to waste any of our time with long winded speeches, so I would like to introduce you to the woman I have decided to court…"
I watched as Darien turned to the side Beryl was sitting on. He paused slightly, his eyes downcast but a smile gracing his lips. Beryl began to stand and gather her skirts, ready to take her place as queen. Ya right, like I would ever let that happen. I took a deep breath and stepped through the doors and out onto the balcony. Whispers flew over the crowds as I stepped forward. As I stepped forward, Darien held his hand out to me, which I quickly accepted. He pulled me to his side, causing me to stumble my last few steps, and turned to face his people once more. In the mean time I turned to Beryl and smiled brightly at her. Her lips were manipulated in some sort of twisted frown, which only marred her already hideous face. Her eyes were ablaze in green fury and her hands clenched her skirts. I was quite sure that her nails were leaving holes in that dress.
"Citizens of Drake, I introduce to you the moon priestess Serenity. She has accepted my proposal and has agreed to allow me to court her. Just like my father before me, his father before him, and all other kings of Drake, I have found myself enraptured by a priestess of the moon."
"Does the council approve?" Beryl hissed. The whispers from the crowd grew once more before they were quieted as Lord Henry stood up.
"We do." Lord Henry said.
"But Father, I was supposed to become the next queen! You told me I was to be the one King Endymion courted."
I spared a glance to the people in the castle's courtyard and noticed how most were shocked by Lady Beryl's outrage.
"Beryl, I have no rule of Endymion or his decision. I am an advisor and while we have discussed everything, we believe that it is in Endymion and the kingdom's best decision to allow this relationship to be explored." Lord Henry hissed. "Now sit back down and act like a lady before I send you off to another boarding school."
I smiled slightly and tried to repress the laughter bubbling in my throat. Unfortunately, I was unable to and a small giggle came out.
"You… you even congratulated me just yesterday!" Beryl hissed, pointing a finger at me.
"Who am I to dash someone's dreams?" I asked. "In fact I only like to support them."
"But you knew!" Beryl screamed.
"General Jadeite, I believe Lady Beryl needs to calm down in one of the back gardens." Darien said.
"Yes, my lord." Jadeite said. He walked over to Beryl and tried to take her arm, but she twisted out of his grip. She sneered at me one more time before stomping down the halls of the castle and disappearing.
"I am sorry for her outburst, my lord." Lord Henry said.
"Maybe next time you should not guarantee wishes that will not come true." Darien replied. He turned back to the people to finish addressing them. "As we have seen, there is one amongst the court that disapproves of my relationship with the moon priestess, is there anyone else not just in the court, but also in the kingdom to disapprove?"
The entire courtyard remained quiet. No bird chanced a chirp. No cricket chanced a song.
"Then, for the next month's time I shall court Serenity. At the next full moon we shall decide if there will be an engagement or not. A ball will be held them to announce our decision. Thank you for coming." Darien bowed away from the podium and led me back inside.
"You handled that very well, my king." Lord Gracin said.
"I told you I was not the only outspoken woman here." I said.
"Yes you did, and I am sorry again, King Endymion, about my daughter's outburst." Lord Henry said.
"You need to have a stern talk with your daughter when you find her again."
"I intend to, in fact, I intend to find the woman who originally taught her mother manners and inquire upon more extensive lessons for my daughter."
"That should be useful." I muttered quietly.
"If you shall excuse us, it is time for a celebratory lunch with our friends." Darien said.
"Of course your majesty." Lord Henry said.
The council members bowed their heads as Darien and I left the hall. Our friends were already outside waiting for us and sitting at a table the servants had already set up. There was plenty of wine to drink and different types of food to go around. Mina and everyone else were talking excitedly about the recent development; even they all seemed to know this would happen the moment I arrived in Drake. When Mina started talking about plans for a ball I turned to Darien to question him his time line for our relationship.
"Darien, how do you expect us to be engaged in a month?" I asked.
"I would ask you to marry me now, but that would break tradition and you have seen first hand how tightly people here hold their traditions."
"But a month?" I asked. "I was expecting something longer."
"Where Serenity is from they date, which is their version of courting, for however long they feel is necessary. It typically lasts over a year's length of time, but sometimes can be shorter. A month is very rare though." Rei explained.
"How did you know that?" I asked.
"You should know the answer to that." Rei said.
"Why so long?" Darien asked.
"Well, in the first month's time deeper feelings like love can sometimes be misinterpreted for lust. People can find out months later that they are not compatible. Well, our society is changing now and it has become common for people to get married, decide they don't love each other, and get divorced."
"Divorced?"
"They end their marriage." I said, shrugging.
"I did not realize other moon priestesses were married."
"A moon priestess doesn't give birth to another moon priestess." Rei explained. "While the other girls and I had mothers associated with the same gods and elements, the moon priestesses are chosen after they are born. They are then raised to be moon priestesses by an elder priestess."
"Seriously?" I asked.
"You did not know this?" Darien asked.
"Um, I wasn't raised in the conventional way. Mother wanted me to be a bit more naïve." I replied, trying to cover for my error.
"Your mother, why was she so special?" Darien asked.
"That is a story for another time." Rei explained.
"Yes, indeed…" I muttered. "So what exactly will I have to do with this ball?"
"Now you're ok with the ball?" Darien asked. "Would you be alright with an engagement that quickly? You are sure this is love and not just lust?"
"I know these feelings are deeper than just lust, because I have seen others in lust back home." I said. "So, yes I'd feel comfortable with announcing an engagement in a month, that is if you still want one."
"I don't think you could make me not marry you." Darien smiled. He took my fingers in his hand and kissed the back of my hand. I blushed slightly and looked down at my food.
"Anyway, it won't be like we've only know each other for a month. We've known each other for quite some time by then." I said.
"Very true." Darien laughed.
"So, if the rest of us could have the royal couple's attention," Mina called out.
"Yes Mina?" I asked.
"How do we want to decorate the ball? I mean we need a color theme, food decisions, music decisions, seating arrangements…"
"You sound as though you are planning a wedding… wait, don't tell me the engagement ball is the wedding."
"Hell no. You won't believe the scale of the wedding. Same decisions though." Mina said.
"Why don't we discuss that another time?" I asked. "It looks as though you are ignoring poor Malachite and he's ready to fall asleep. Anyway, shouldn't the two of you be getting married first?"
"O we have the plans ready, we're just waiting on one little thing." Mina said.
"And that would be?" I asked.
"We want the castle to be white again." Mina said. "It would just make the most beautiful back drop and ever since I was little I wanted to get married in front of the white castle."
"I'm assuming that's the same for the rest of you?" I asked.
"It is." The other girls nodded.
"I have a question, why aren't the rest of you engaged?"
"We've been too busy with the rebels and preparing for whatever they are planning." Nephrite said.
"That better be the reason."
"It is, don't worry." Lita said.
"Well then, why should only Darien and I get engaged in a month? Why not Lita and Nephrite and Amy and Zoicite?"
"The ball is your special event. We will announce ours at another time." Amy said.
I opened my mouth to say something else, but Darien squeezed my hand. "Fine, but I expect one soon."
"Of course." Lita said.
When we finished with our meal, Darien pulled me away from the rest of the group. We walked into the stables where Harmony and Mayhem were already saddled. I looked at Darien curiously, but he ignored my stares and helped me onto Harmony. After getting on Mayhem, Darien led the way out of the stables. I followed him in the forest on a small, but well-worn path. We followed it for almost an hour before arriving at our little pond. Darien dismounted and then helped me. The horses immediately disappeared into the vegetation. It freaked me out how quickly they could disappear, but Darien was just as calm as the girls were when Mayhem disappeared on me the first time.
"I figured we could use some quiet." Darien said.
"That we could." I agreed. "You don't need to make any important decisions or anything right now?"
"Nope."
"So I get the king all to myself?"
"That you do." Darien smiled. "Although I did bring you here for a reason."
"I knew it!" I smiled.
"I wanted to do this properly." Darien said. He took my hand and led me over to the rock where we had talked so often originally. "Serenity, will you do me the honor of allowing me to court you. Not because the council is pressuring me, or you, or because it's tradition, but because I have found myself becoming quite fond and possibly falling in love with you."
"Yes." I said, happily.
Darien smiled and wrapped me in a tight hug. I curled into his chest, relishing in his strong arms around me. He placed a few kisses on my forehead, then on my cheeks. Before any of us could stop it, Darien's lips were on mine again. Just like the first time we had kissed, it was magical to say the least. His lips were perfect, molding to mine easily. My arms slipped up around his neck and my fingers knitted into his hair. I opened my lips, letting Darien's tongue slip into my mouth. Our tongues slid together, enticing each other in some sort of primal dance. Eventually we broke away, gasping for breath. I looked deep into Darien's dark eyes as I tried to regain my breathing.
"Darien, I have something to tell you."
"Of course."
"This might be a bit confusing, but I believe that you have to start any relationship off with honesty."
"Of course." Darien nodded. His arms tightened around me a bit more and I could tell I was making him nervous.
"I actually have no idea where moon priestesses live or worship. I don't understand their culture, what's expected of them, or anything else. I was thrown into this role when I came here by Rei. I've been learning the history of Drake and the moon priestesses since arriving here."
"But then… where did you come from?"
"I'm still not quite sure the relationship, whether I'm from a different time or realm. Either way, I'm not from Drake. I'm from a time where magic isn't believed in unless it's at a show. I'm from a time where everyone is too busy to slow down and enjoy the world around them. I'm from a time when wars destroy not only families, but also the world. I'm also from a time when women and men are considered equal for the most part. I'm from a time where you can make your own decisions, well most of the time. I'm from a time where you get to follow your heart and you can forget about what others think of the one you love."
"I have to say I'd love to see your realm, even if it's not perfect. However, why have you come here? How did you come here?"
"When I left the castle that night, I was trying to find my way home. I was looking for the curtain separating the two realms."
"You really wanted to leave then."
"Like I said before, I was being overwhelmed with what people wanted. But you have to understand that I came here knowing no more than a newborn baby. People were telling me how to act and feel that I just wanted to go home. I didn't want to be a child anymore."
"So now you're staying."
"I don't care what people say, especially the council, but I am staying." I said.
"Thank god." Darien breathed.
"About two months before coming here, archaeologists such as myself learned about the Dragon's Castle, which is Castle Drake. The curtain between our realms was slowly lifting and our worlds were merging. Rei said the magic was draining for this land, causing the realms to merge. Anyway, on the night of the full moon I felt an urge to go for a walk. I did, found a sword, and was transported here. That's where I met the girls and the generals."
"The generals knew about you the whole time?"
"They did."
"No wonder they were always leaving and spending time outside of the castle." Darien muttered.
"You have to give them some credit. They didn't trust me. Malachite thought I was a rebel and was protecting Mina, even though Rei told him constantly that I was not a threat. Anyway, I started training and then I met you and you really know the rest."
"Why are you here?"
"Still a good question and I think only time will reveal that. Although, do you want to know my romantic belief?" Darien nodded his head and waited for me to continue. "I think I came here for you. We were both missing something and that missing something was each other. We would never be complete if we never met."
"I like that answer." Darien smiled.
"You know how I found the goddess that night?"
"You looked so beautiful walking on the water. I thought you were the goddess."
"That's the thing. The goddess is my mother. She sent me to the other world because she didn't want me to grow up here. She wanted me to be naïve when I came here."
"Your mother is the moon goddess? You're a goddess?" Darien asked.
"Please don't think any differently. I don't know if I even should have told you, but I don't want to hide anything from you."
"I won't think any differently of you. I already placed you on a pedestal as high as those the gods reside on. I guess I wasn't all that far off." Darien said.
"Apparently not." I replied.
"You do realize that you have a higher station than me now."
"Yes, but can we not tell anyone, please?" I asked. "I don't even know what being the daughter of a goddess is like or what I should expect or what others expect out of me. It seems as though the longer I am here the more questions I have."
"And I'll do my best to help answer them. And don't worry, I don't plan sharing you or your secret with anyone."
"Hm… I like the sound of that." I said. I twisted my head so that I could kiss Darien.
We spent the rest of the afternoon and early evening at the pond, just relaxing and talking. Darien told me stories of his youth, even though I could tell that some of the memories brought hard emotions for him. I would just snuggle closer or run a hand through his hair and Darien seemed to come back to me. When we finally did return to the castle most of the people had already retired for the night. Darien escorted me back to my room and kissed me tenderly. I sighed and took my time entering my room, wishing the night never had to end.
I had just begun to fall asleep when I felt the bed dip down next to me. I was immediately awake and I tried to move away from the intruder. However, they wrapped an arm around me and pulled me into their chest. While my mind was running a million miles a second my body was relaxing. When I realized my body was calm I took a second to look at my capture.
"Darien?" I asked.
"Sh…" Darien said.
"You better explain how you got in here in the morning."
"There are secret passages all over the castle, including one that links the royal chamber, my room, to the queen's room, your room." Darien said. "The first king had it built and it's been used every generation. Now go to sleep."
I didn't respond. I just snuggled into Darien's once more and quickly fell back to sleep.