A/N: I still don't own any of them...well maybe the cute little boy with the green eyes but he's not the one I really want. So I guess i'll just go back to dreaming that I have anything to do with the greatness that is sailor moon.
Hope you all enjoy this long awaited chapter, this one is for you Serenichii, with my thanks for getting me back on track :-)
The time passed quickly, as it often did when enthralled in the notes of good music and soon the little prince could play more than just the first few notes of several different pieces of music. Serenity knew the boy had a long way to go before he was proficient enough to play an entire piece but with a bit of practice and a few years of growth he would be playing just as well as anyone else.
The afternoon sun shone through the windows and the light breeze wafting in from outside made the curtain dance as she listened to Darres play the last few notes of the song he had just been taught while she sat in a nearby chair.
"Very nice Darres, with just a little more practice I think you can handle whole pieces by yourself." Serenity complimented the boy as his face turned a now familiar shade of red.
"Thank you for teaching me Bunny." Was his shy reply.
"Well now that we have had a lovely morning with our music what say we go meet Nephrite for his promised afternoon picnic? It looks wonderful outside and although I do enjoy the piano I would much rather spend the day outside, wouldn't you?" she playfully asked him as she vacated her chair and motioned for Darres to do the same.
"Well, little one what do you say we find our way back to the stables and prepare ourselves for some good food?"
"Oh is Nephrite bringing the food? He makes the best stuff! And he always slips me an extra cookie when the cooks aren't looking!" he told her excitedly
"Yes he will be in charge of food and I expect Jadeite will be readying the horses for us, I am curious as to who else is going to accompany us though, I'm afraid I'm not familiar with anyone other than the generals and your mother here."
"Oh well knowing Nephrite it'll probably just be him and Jadeite, maybe Malachite if he's feeling up for the ride, Zoisite almost never comes out with us on the horses unless he has to and my brother is too busy with all the other princesses around that he couldn't be bothered to go riding with his little brother and his generals" Darres grumpily admitted.
"Maybe Sir Andrew will come if we ask him nice enough, he's my brother's best friend and he's a lot nicer to me lately since Endymion's been busy with the princesses, or trying to dodge them at least. I think you'd like him Bunny." He added as an afterthought
"In that case I sincerely hope he does come along, I always enjoy meeting new and favorable people. Come now before we are late and Nephrite eats all the food." She teased him and they made their way out the doors and down the halls towards the stables once again.
In another wing of the palace Endymion had secured a late breakfast and was back on his way to continue his search when he ran into Nephrite walking out of the kitchen with a basket in his hands and being followed by his other 3 generals. He thought it strange and decided to see what exactly had all of his generals riled up.
"So what's the occasion Neph? Got a date with one of the maids again?" he teased eying the basket in his hands.
"If you must know Prince, I'm off on a picnic with my little bunny. These goons" he said tilting his head to the side to indicate the distantly following generals "are tagging along to cause trouble. Would you like to join us? It's a beautiful day out and I've prepared plenty of food. It would be the perfect distraction from your lovely princesses' attention if you were to magically disappear for a few hours you know." His words were filled with good intention but Endymion was in no mood for picnics or horse rides when a certain blonde beauty that he had still had yet to find was on his mind.
"No thank you, Neph but I did have a few questions for Jadeite if you can wait a few more minutes while we talk before you make your way out.
"Ah it's not a problem Endymion, I think Zoicite, Malachite and myself can make our own way to the stables without Jadeite to guide us. We will wait for him there, I assure you so take your time." With that said he gave a slight bow to Endymion and was off again down the corridors of the palace.
As the other 3 generals passed Endymion called out to Jadeite to stay back while the others continued on.
"What is it you need me for my Prince?" Jadeite asked curiously
"I noticed that you had missed dinner last night and was curious as to your reasons. I also noticed that my brother was absent and would like to inquire about a certain girl that may have been in his company." He spoke softly as they walked down the hall far behind the other generals.
"Ah, I had hoped my absence would not be noticed but I guess it was not meant to be. I must admit I had no urgent business that kept me from dinner but I had lost track of time after your darling little brother and his escort had detoured me from my normal evening routine with a ride out to the stream." He paused for a moment before continuing slowly.
"The girl of whom you are inquiring about, was she of blonde hair and blue eyes? If she was, I must admit she is a lovely sight and I was lucky enough to spend some time with her out by the willows last night."
"You mean you've seen her? What is her name? I've been looking for her since yesterday evening and see seems to have alluded me at every turn!" he spoke quickly eager to get an answer
"Well perhaps if you had been at breakfast this morning with the rest of us you would have had the honor of meeting her yourself Prince. Lady Usagi made an appearance as did your brother and it seems your father was quite taken by the woman. Your mother and she seem to be old friends of sorts and she is currently here at the palace visiting with her. Your brother has not been away from her side since her arrival as I can tell but no mention of when exactly that was or how was given." Jadeite explained
"You mean she was right there under my nose the whole time?!? Damn the fates for not letting me meet her! And damn Darres for hiding her away from me!" Endymion's temper was starting to rise and Jadeite knew from experience what a dangerous thing that could be.
"Your majesty I am sure you will see her at some point today, the palace is only so big and there are other beautiful women to keep you occupied until then. If you were to talk with your mother she might be able to help you further than I can in this matter." He answered quickly in an attempt to quell his rising anger.
"You may be right Jadeite, thank you for your help but if you see Darres at all today, tell him that I would like a word with him please. I am to understand you are accompanying Neph on his picnic this afternoon?"
"Yes Endymion I am, I promised Aries a ride in the hills today and since they were already going out they invited me to join them. Would you like to join us? It may get your mind off of your elusive lady." Jadeite gave him a warm smile and hoped his offer would help to calm him.
"I think I will decline once again, Neph already asked me and I believe he is waiting for you at the stables as we speak. I would not want to hold up your outing so I think we are finished here. If you happen to see this Lady Usagi could you please inform me?"
"As you wish Prince." With a bow and nod of his head the two men parted ways again. One in the direction of the stables the other off in search of a beautiful woman who now had a name attached.
As Jadeite made it out to the stables he heard familiar voices carried on the wind and the conversation he walked in to was very amusing to his ears.
"Oh come on Neph, do you really think you have a chance with her? She is so out of your reach. Just bow out now before you make of fool of yourself when I sweep her off her feet."
"On the contrary, I'm not the one who got his ass handed to him by the little vixen; I think it was she who was sweeping you off your feet if what I heard was true."
"Personally I think both of you bumbling buffoons don't have a chance with her. She's far to smart to fall for either of you." Zoicite's comment astounded all 3 sets of ears and they all turned to stare at him
"Don't give me that look, you know very well I appreciate a beautiful woman just as much as the rest of you. Most of them are just too much of a twit to warrant my attention or affection." Zoicite defended himself.
"Whoa there, are we all talking about the same girl here? Little blonde beauty with silky skin and baby blue eyes? I think we may have a problem here." Jadeite cut in.
"And what exactly would that problem be Jed?" Malachite questioned
"This little bunny we all seem to be after has also caught the attention of our brooding Prince and he's on the prowl for her. When I got pulled aside and questioned about my whereabouts last night I also got an inquisition on our little bunny and it seems although he has yet to formally meet her he is quite smitten with her already."
"Aw damn, you mean we can't just fight amongst ourselves for her?"
"Unless we want to risk Endymion's anger I wouldn't try it." Jadeite trailed off for a minute
"Unless we can find a way from keeping them apart until one of us can gain her affections…"
"Jed you are so evil, I think it's a wonderful idea!" Nephrite and Malachite agreed.
"I don't know about this guys…" Zoicite started but was abruptly cut off by Serenity and Darres' arrival.
"What don't you know about Zoisicte? Darres here was telling me you were one of the most intelligent in the kingdom it must be quite the puzzle if even you have no knowledge about it." She teased good naturedly.
"It is of no importance now that you are here lady, are you quite ready for a nice picnic?" he responded leisurely so as not to cause suspicion.
"You will be accompanying us then Zoicite? I seem to recall you saying you did not much enjoy horses. And please call do not call me lady, Usagi will do or Bunny if you please." The sweet smile she added at the end was a done deal for Zoicite and he couldn't help but respond with a smile of his own.
"Alright then Bunny, and since you have denied my formality I wish to extend the same privilege to you. I did mention a slight aversion to horses but on occasion I do enjoy a nice ride through the countryside and today is a beautiful day, it seems a pity to waste it inside."
"That is very true Zoi, I can not fault you in the least." She gave him another smile and his heart pounded a little harder in his chest.
"Well now that we are all present perhaps we can get on our way, I see some very impatient horses waiting for us outside and I am certain our lunch would be better eaten sooner rather than later." Jadeite commented
Upon his suggestion the small party moved out to the pastures where the horses were roaming while nibbling on bits of grass here and there. Darres collected Diamond from under a shady tree as a familiar chestnut stallion trotted over to its master Jadeite. Malachite wrangled up his Palamino Apollo, the blonde hair of his mane waving in the wind as he playfully ran circles around his master. Zoicite was rather clumsy retrieving his own grey stallion Pan, who appeared to be as laid back as his rider, much more content to roll in the dirt than comply with his masters wishes.
Serenity merely whistled again to summon her mount and to her surprise two black horses approached her this time. The first she recognized as Dante with his white mark on his head but the second she did not recall. Noticing her confusion and slightly curious himself as to why the other horse was approaching her Malachite supplied her with an explanation.
"So I see Dante has finally found himself a rider that he approves of. That is quite the accomplishment Bunny, he has gotten the best of every one of us present now and some of the more unfortunate stable boys might I add. That other one there that seems so fond of you is Zeus, he does not usually come to anyone but his master and…" he quickly scanned the landscape before continuing "since I do not see Endymion anywhere around that is quite odd that he would be coming to you." He finished his curiosity peeked.
"Well he looks like a big sweetie to me," she replied before turning back to the horse in question
"Aren't you now Zeus?" She cooed at the giant beast that had laid his powerful head in her hands and nuzzled her hand with his soft nose. "Just a big softy in a warrior's body."
"I do not know how you do that Bunny but you need to ready your mount so we can be on our way." Jadeite reminded her from behind
"As you say Jadeite, I guess I will just let them decide who wants to carry me today as I can not make a decision." And as she turned and started walking back towards the stables much to everyone's surprise they both followed her calmly and quickly. Darres followed close behind with his horse, content to be at Serenity's side.
The three generals who had not been aware of her gift around horses stood in awe as two of the most feared and dangerous horses in the kingdom followed behind her as if friendly little colts anxious to play.
"Are you really that surprised? She's got just about everything a man could ever want in a woman, why not be able to control a ferocious beast that not a one of us could handle?" Jadeite joked.
"I mean she whipped Mal's ass in a swordfight so we know she can fight, Zoi seems to think she's pretty smart so she's gotta have some brains, she's beautiful, she's good with the little prince, she has an appetite like a horse from what I hear from Neph despite her body and the King and Queen already adore her, what more could a man possibly ask for?"
After a long silence Jadeite started up again. "Exactly, nothing that I can think of. Which is why I think one of us should ensure she stays around. Endymion has enough beautiful women after him at the moment, and she herself has stated on multiple occasions that she is not here for his hand and for all our loyalty and years of service I think this is one reward we can indulge ourselves in. May the best man win her heart." With that said he walked off back towards the stables Aries on his heels anxious to get in his daily ride.
The three remaining generals looked at each other for a minute, rolling the idea around in their heads before they all came to the decision that Jadeite was right, they deserved the love of a woman like Usagi and they were determined to see just who would be the lucky one to receive such a gift. They all grabbed their horses and made their way back to the stables to get ready for their ride.
By the time they had all reached the gates of the stables Darres had Diamond saddled and ready to go and Jadeite was just about finished with Aries. The three generals all took their time saddling and readying their horses while Serenity was still deciding which horse to ride.
By the time the others were ready to go she had still not made a choice so she just closed her eyes, walked a few steps away and the first horse to follow her would be who she rode. To her surprise it was Zeus who had approached her from behind and thrown his head over her shoulder and nuzzled her cheek. So she climbed up on his strong back and was not at all surprised to see Dante waiting patiently beside her.
"Are we ready to go then Bunny?" Jadeite called from atop his mount.
"Yes I believe we are, but I think we will be having one more guest than originally planned if that is alright." Serenity giggled as Dante followed her and Zeus' every move.
Jadeite turned his head to see what it was she had laughed at and sighed; one more horse would not be a problem as long as he behaved and he could not fault the animal for not wanting to be parted from her so they simply made their way out of the stables and out the road towards the hills of the kingdom. As expected Dante followed her staying at her side and behaving better than any of the generals could recall.
'I hope Endymion didn't plan on taking a ride today or he might have my head for this' Jadeite thought of just a few minutes too late.
It was a generally unspoken but strictly enforced rule that nobody besides the prince himself rode his horse, usually because he would not tolerate any other rider and sometimes would not even let the stable boys near him to brush him, but this would be a special case scenario. Zeus had come to her so she could not be at fault, if Endymion ever found out about the occurrence some choice words might be thrown about and mostly directed at Jadeite. He just prayed that Endymion would be too busy searching for Bunny inside the palace while he and his fellow generals would war for her affection outside of the palace for him to notice the absence.
They cut off of the dirt road leading out of the palace after a few minutes and took a shortcut across a few fields of wildflowers and tall grasses. They crossed the familiar stream from the previous day and kept going through a thicket of trees and beyond to a clearing of green meadows and rolling hills.
The horses knew the terrain well and upon entering the open meadow Zeus tensed up in anticipation, the urge to run singing deep in his veins. He was too well trained to break off without his rider's permission and Endymion hardly ever allowed him the freedom to run freely unless it was in open battle so he balked as his initial reaction.
Serenity sensed his tension and somehow knew exactly what the stallion needed. With a wink at Darres and a sparkle in her eye that Jadeite caught just a fraction of a second too late, Serenity lowered her head to the animal's ear and whispered a single word.
Immediately the beast broke out into a full out gallop away from the group, Dante following at her side and the last thing they heard before she vanished down into the green fields was her gentle laugh drifting on the breeze.
"I knew she was going to do that!" Jadeite pouted atop his stallion, eyes scanning the horizon for the pair of black horses.
"Yesterday she and Darres proposed a race and took off with absolutely no warning!"
"You're just mad because you lost Jadeite, and now you owe her a favor!" Darres taunted from his horse a safe distance away from the miffed general.
"Be careful little Prince, a few words from me and you could be on stable duty for a week."
The threat stilled his tongue from any retort he might have had and the remainder of the group trotted along the hills until they found a nice spot on the far side with a grove of trees to rest under and secured an acceptable spot to eat their meal.
As Nephrite unloaded the basket from his house and a few bottles of wine and a few skins of water for refreshments the rest settled in and waited for Serenity to return from her suddenly little outburst.
A comfortable conversation was started amongst the generals as Darres acted as a sentry for Serenity, sitting in a high branch of a nearby tree. Several minutes passed before Darres spotted the faint outline of the two stallions in the distance and it took a moment to register them as Bunny. He quickly alerted the generals of her return and scrambled back down the tree to meet her head on.
Zeus and Dante slowed to a trot and then a walk as they approached the group and Serenity merely ran a gentle hand down one and then the other's muscled necks and they stopped altogether and allowed her to get down and settled amongst the generals. They both accepted the water offered to them by Serenity and after quenching their thirst wandered off to mingle with the other horses in the comfortable shade of the trees.
"So Bunny, what errand brought you to our humble little palace? I now you have said that you are visiting but where is it you have come from if I may ask?" Malachite asked offhandedly striking up a conversation.
"Honestly, I was doing some traveling, visiting the closest thing I have to a sister and my trip got…detoured a bit due to certain…complications, and I ended up here for a time. It was not originally planned but I do enjoy your home and it has been many years since last I saw your queen."
"How many do you mean my lady? We were all raised on the grounds from boys and I do not recall ever seeing you in the past, perhaps you were very young last you came to our home and were not old enough to recall?" Zoicite questioned curiously.
"Ah Zoicite you are partially correct, I was quite young the last time I journeyed here but I very much remember my trip. Much has changed since that time but I am afraid a lady never shares her age with a gentleman so exactly how many years ago it was you will have to imagine." She winked at him and he blushed a very light red.
"Well perhaps you could tell us about your home then? Or perhaps your parents? Nephrite asked from the shade beneath a nearby tree.
"If you really want to know then I shall share with the story of my people. Many years ago before you or I were even born a great war raged between my people and an unholy alliance known as the Nemesis. They were a dark and dangerous people, full of criminals and murders and blood thirsty soldiers. My people were the last defense between Earth and their chaotic underworld and although my father and his armies fought valiantly we were a limited number and the shadows in the darkness of the underworld continued to grow and multiply everyday. People whose hearts had been devoured by corruption and greed joined the armies of the underworld as spy's and infiltrated many cities and towns in the name of the dark army. Soon they could not hold them off anymore and darkness flooded the land of Earth. My father Gabriel rode with his knights in a last effort to banish the evil from the earth to make it safe again for all. They rode through the dark one's camps and burned them as they went, leaving only the smell of charred flesh and death in their wake, all the way down into the underworld itself. There my father faced the queen of the underworld and slain her upon her very thrown. Victory came to my people and the Earth was safe once again but my father had paid the price for his victory. Much of the Earth had been marred by the fires and the dark armies and many blamed my father for the destruction and named him a murderer of the land and its people. During battle he had been poisoned by several poison tipped arrows and grew weaker by the day. By the time he returned to my mother's side he could barely stand on his own and knew his end was near. His dying words were never forgotten and are still passed from my mother to me today." she paused a moment as though lost in thought.
"'Fight with honor, protect the weak, love with all your heart and never forget our people.' He lived and ruled by those rules and since his death my mother has ruled by the same laws. My people are taught to fight with honor, to be fierce and agile so we can protect those weaker than us. When we love it is for an eternity, our hearts are not fickle or weak. When we marry there is a bond formed between lovers that the gods themselves can not break and are envious of. My people are never forgotten even after their passing, they live with us in song and dance, in our stories and our memories they thrive and we acknowledge them with our prayers and they answer in our dreams." She paused for a another few moments to calm herself.
"I was born 2 months after my father's death so I never knew him as a father but I knew him as a warrior, as the King that he was to my people and the lover he was to my mother. I do not regret my father's actions, he did them for the safety of the planet, but I do regret not knowing him as a man. If there was one thing I could change in the world it would be that." She ended her story a far away look in her cool blue eyes.
Nobody said anything for several minutes as the story they just heard sunk in. One by one they lifted their heads to look at one another, Zoicite had been the last to raise his eyes as he tried to recall where he had heard a story like that before.
He vaguely remembered the King telling him stories as a boy of a demon King who rode the lands slaying and burning as he went, but he would not believe that the stories in his head and the one he just heard described the same person, it was impossible. The stories had claimed he was of the Lunarian race, an ancient breed of people who held power and dominion over all the planets of the solar system.
'Bunny can not be of that race, we had cut all communication with the moon years ago when Cecil had been crowned King. Even if Bunny was somehow related to the demon King she could never have gotten on our planet or into the palace without anyone knowing.' He thought to himself
Serenity spoke again after no one had found the courage to open their mouths after her story.
"My home is a peaceful place, we have roses and gardens just like yours and our palace is just as elaborate and busy. My mother rules by herself and I am training to take her spot when she steps down. We do not have rolling hills and grassy meadows like you do here, we have rocks and canyons, open spaces for miles and dust. I rather enjoy your home and the grass between my feet and the breeze on my face. I do not wish to leave home but sometimes I wish I could…see other things, live another life for a few days and forget I am a princess." She looked far off again and the generals were speechless once again.
They had never expected something like that from a princess, usually they complained of nature touching them, the grass leaving stains on their dresses and the wind messing up elegant hair dos. She was the total opposite of every princess they had ever met and was instead what each had always envisioned what a princess should be.
She was down to earth, not stuck up and prissy, she told stories and rode horses voluntarily; she walked through the dirt and didn't complain about the sun in her face or her shoes getting dirty. The only Princesses that did not want to be a princess were the ones that wanted more, they wanted to be queens and have power over countries and armies, not disappear into the sunset and forfeit their name and their lives of high society. This girl was all wrong by social means and every bit perfect by every other standard. She was an oddity and now more than ever each general wanted to be able to call her his own.
So there we go, I hope nobody minded that this chapter was a little bit longer than usual but my muses finally came out to play so i left them run loose. I would like to apologize to everyone for taking so long to update but life got in the way and I just couldn't figure out where I wanted to go with this story for the longest time but now thanks to a few loyal fans' encouragement and one crazy author like myself giving me a push i'm back and I plan to stay until this story is done no matter how long it takes me! As always reviews are appreciated and if anyone has any suggestions or something they would like to see happen just drop me a line and i'll see what I can come up with. Thanks so much for reading:-)
