What was left of the rainstorm was departing, revealing a full view of the Earth in the sky. The sight calmed Tasuke immensely. He hadn't been back there since the attack, but his Chief Advisor had reported that all was normal. He felt obligated to stay with the other Inners- he was one, after all.
Tasuke knew that his station as the Senshi of Earth was different than that of the other nine. They all had a common mission- the protection of the Holy Family, the family of the Moon kingdom. Yet Tasuke wasn't given the magical powers that the girls were. His protection was something different. Something more personal. As he saw it, the Moon and Earth had once been a single planet. Yet in the early stages, there had been a violent collision with another object from space- resulting in two different-sized planetoids, the smaller of the two revolving around the larger, but always have a significant pull on it's superior. He could only assume it was the same with the Senshi of what would have been a single planet. The Guardian of Earth was given physical power and abilities of a true soldier. The greatest king. The Guardian of the Moon was given the ethereal powers of the other Senshi. Her soul would be undiluted- The Holy Queen. They were a single soul divided.
Tasuke was unsure as to whether or not Princess Imbriana had ever put this much thought into their relationship. Tasuke had always tried to distance himself from her. They still had so much growing to do, he knew. Yet lately he found himself wishing more than ever to hold her close. He recalled how is heart had soared when Hakeru finally revealed how Chiyo felt about him. His other half, his balance.
A pang of failure went through him as he looked at Chiyo's sleeping face again. He told himself that he couldn't have been responsible. In reality, she had been the one to save him. . . He stroked her arm meditatively.
"Hi."
Finally, she was awake and coherent. Tasuke kneeled down next to her.
"Hi," was all he could say. Before he could stop it, tears of relief flooded his eyes. "I was worried about you."
Chiyo's color was returning to her face, and she smiled graciously. "I'm fine. And so are you." Her voice sounded a little surprised. She reached out a hand and rested it on the side of his face. "That makes me so happy."
Tasuke was overwhelmed with emotion. He leaned in and wrapped his arms around Chiyo, embracing her closely as he dared. She was still weak.
"I was scared for you, Chiyo. I don't think I would be able to live without you."
Chiyo was vaguely startled by his words. Only yesterday had they acknowledged any kind of feelings for each other. Now this? If she hadn't felt the same way, she wouldn't have understood him at all. She held him.
"We won't ever be without each other, Tasuke. I promise."
Something was egging at Mikomi.
The Senshi had long since left her room. She had decided to read a book, but her mind wasn't focusing. Tasuke and Chiyo had been together that morning at the Moon Shrine. Together and alone. She was certain that she had missed their first kiss- and certain she had missed her only chance at proving to herself what she already felt she knew.
Soulmates.
The word echoed in her head for a few moments. She definitely believed in soulmates. As the Senshi of love, she already had seen them before. Her friends and family. . . more than once she'd seen the golden light that soulmates reflected off each other when they were in close contact. Chiyo's and Sora's parents had been soulmates, and Kei's parents as well. Her heart wrenched when she thought of King Phoebus. To have your true love so gravely ill for so long. . . And what an ailment to be diagnosed with. She couldn't imagine how he must have felt discovering the truth- it was a demon, an evil spirit that had gone so long undetected that there was no way to reverse it. Her heart pained for his loss.
Then she thought of Kei. She felt her breath start to quiver. Mikomi had at first been ashamed of the way Kei made her feel inside. Just seeing her face was enough to make Mikomi weak in the knees. That evening that they danced, however, all nervousness left her. Kei had made her feel something that no man ever had, after just one dance. She resolved to leave all judgments behind that night. Their relationship had been blossoming ever since.
Mikomi put the book down in defeat. She would get no reading done tonight. Her mind was too full. She settled on winding her small musical jewelry box, and dancing across the smooth stone floor in the Earthlight.
Hakeru had never been one to stay inside, and Ken knew it.
The walls of the garden were illuminated by a full Earth in the sky as he crept among them. He was sure that she was out here somewhere. He could feel it. He wondered who would find who first.
This was a game they had played for hours when they were younger. Tasuke, Hakeru and Ken could sneak into any room in any palace (They knew, they had tried), and used to have competitions on who could stay hidden from the others longest. His heart sank slightly when he remembered that Hakeru always won.
"Only because you breathe so loud." Said a smug voice behind him. Ken stood up straight and turned around. Hakeru was in her regular black pantsuit, with her hair in her favorite matching headband. She stood resolute, smiling smoothly.
"Right. Next time, remind me not to breathe." Ken replied. The started walking together, through the labyrinth of leaves.
"What, and lose the game? Come on. Nearly ten years and I haven't lost yet. Can't spoil my record." She feigned pride, though not very well, Ken thought. He offered out an arm to her, and she took it eloquently.
"It was worth a try," he replied. They walked for a while together, breathing in the scent of damp flowers and crisp air. In the distance, Ken could see the lights from the town. . . the cleanup effort was still going on. He had offered to stay later, but his father had insisted that he return to the palace for rest. He agreed only because he had wanted to check on his little sister.
"I visited Kohana. She's awake, and recovering quickly." Hakeru's voice brought him back to the garden.
"I suppose that she would heal fast, wouldn't she?" Ken recalled how Kohana had healed him once, when he received a nasty gash from an animal while on the hunt.
"I suppose," said Hakeru somewhat distantly. Ken glanced sideways at her.
"Are you okay?" He asked, concern rising in his voice.
"Yes, I'm alright. I'm just trying to sort everything out in my head," she explained. "It's a busy place these days." They passed the celestial fountain and went through towards where the trees were growing at the edge of the maze.
"I don't doubt that," Ken agreed. "Besides having your own problems, you absorb the problems of people around you, too. It's not healthy."
Hakeru shrugged. "You know that it's not intentional. It's part of who I am. When I was younger, I don't think I could understand that it's my gift to people, to be able to help them. I guess I kind of act like a mirror, a way for people to be honest with themselves. I can feel what they feel, and provide a nonbiased opinion of their problems." She smiled a little. "Problem is, I can't provide a nonbiased opinion to myself of my problems."
"Ah, I see what you're getting at." Ken nodded. You don't have an empath to step back and point you in the right direction."
"Yes, kind of." Hakeru agreed.
Ken was quiet for a few seconds, then stepped in front of her. She looked up, surprised at his move. He didn't move towards her, but instead looked into her eyes. He just looked, seeing the light of the stars swimming the bottomless oceans of Prussian blue. When he did speak again, he managed to catch her off guard.
"You're worried about the Princess."
"Well, aren't we all?" She countered.
Ken became more specific. "Yes, but you're worried about her for a different reason. I think you already know the way that this battle on the Moon Kingdom is going to end. You're worried about Chiyo in a different sense. Something else is going to happen, isn't it?"
Hakeru was taken aback. "You're getting better, Ken." He had hoped that she would explain her thoughts, but she merely turned back and walked towards the castle, without saying a word.
Ken couldn't help but smile a little. She couldn't let him discover too much about her at once, now could she?
Tasuke knew that his station as the Senshi of Earth was different than that of the other nine. They all had a common mission- the protection of the Holy Family, the family of the Moon kingdom. Yet Tasuke wasn't given the magical powers that the girls were. His protection was something different. Something more personal. As he saw it, the Moon and Earth had once been a single planet. Yet in the early stages, there had been a violent collision with another object from space- resulting in two different-sized planetoids, the smaller of the two revolving around the larger, but always have a significant pull on it's superior. He could only assume it was the same with the Senshi of what would have been a single planet. The Guardian of Earth was given physical power and abilities of a true soldier. The greatest king. The Guardian of the Moon was given the ethereal powers of the other Senshi. Her soul would be undiluted- The Holy Queen. They were a single soul divided.
Tasuke was unsure as to whether or not Princess Imbriana had ever put this much thought into their relationship. Tasuke had always tried to distance himself from her. They still had so much growing to do, he knew. Yet lately he found himself wishing more than ever to hold her close. He recalled how is heart had soared when Hakeru finally revealed how Chiyo felt about him. His other half, his balance.
A pang of failure went through him as he looked at Chiyo's sleeping face again. He told himself that he couldn't have been responsible. In reality, she had been the one to save him. . . He stroked her arm meditatively.
"Hi."
Finally, she was awake and coherent. Tasuke kneeled down next to her.
"Hi," was all he could say. Before he could stop it, tears of relief flooded his eyes. "I was worried about you."
Chiyo's color was returning to her face, and she smiled graciously. "I'm fine. And so are you." Her voice sounded a little surprised. She reached out a hand and rested it on the side of his face. "That makes me so happy."
Tasuke was overwhelmed with emotion. He leaned in and wrapped his arms around Chiyo, embracing her closely as he dared. She was still weak.
"I was scared for you, Chiyo. I don't think I would be able to live without you."
Chiyo was vaguely startled by his words. Only yesterday had they acknowledged any kind of feelings for each other. Now this? If she hadn't felt the same way, she wouldn't have understood him at all. She held him.
"We won't ever be without each other, Tasuke. I promise."
Something was egging at Mikomi.
The Senshi had long since left her room. She had decided to read a book, but her mind wasn't focusing. Tasuke and Chiyo had been together that morning at the Moon Shrine. Together and alone. She was certain that she had missed their first kiss- and certain she had missed her only chance at proving to herself what she already felt she knew.
Soulmates.
The word echoed in her head for a few moments. She definitely believed in soulmates. As the Senshi of love, she already had seen them before. Her friends and family. . . more than once she'd seen the golden light that soulmates reflected off each other when they were in close contact. Chiyo's and Sora's parents had been soulmates, and Kei's parents as well. Her heart wrenched when she thought of King Phoebus. To have your true love so gravely ill for so long. . . And what an ailment to be diagnosed with. She couldn't imagine how he must have felt discovering the truth- it was a demon, an evil spirit that had gone so long undetected that there was no way to reverse it. Her heart pained for his loss.
Then she thought of Kei. She felt her breath start to quiver. Mikomi had at first been ashamed of the way Kei made her feel inside. Just seeing her face was enough to make Mikomi weak in the knees. That evening that they danced, however, all nervousness left her. Kei had made her feel something that no man ever had, after just one dance. She resolved to leave all judgments behind that night. Their relationship had been blossoming ever since.
Mikomi put the book down in defeat. She would get no reading done tonight. Her mind was too full. She settled on winding her small musical jewelry box, and dancing across the smooth stone floor in the Earthlight.
Hakeru had never been one to stay inside, and Ken knew it.
The walls of the garden were illuminated by a full Earth in the sky as he crept among them. He was sure that she was out here somewhere. He could feel it. He wondered who would find who first.
This was a game they had played for hours when they were younger. Tasuke, Hakeru and Ken could sneak into any room in any palace (They knew, they had tried), and used to have competitions on who could stay hidden from the others longest. His heart sank slightly when he remembered that Hakeru always won.
"Only because you breathe so loud." Said a smug voice behind him. Ken stood up straight and turned around. Hakeru was in her regular black pantsuit, with her hair in her favorite matching headband. She stood resolute, smiling smoothly.
"Right. Next time, remind me not to breathe." Ken replied. The started walking together, through the labyrinth of leaves.
"What, and lose the game? Come on. Nearly ten years and I haven't lost yet. Can't spoil my record." She feigned pride, though not very well, Ken thought. He offered out an arm to her, and she took it eloquently.
"It was worth a try," he replied. They walked for a while together, breathing in the scent of damp flowers and crisp air. In the distance, Ken could see the lights from the town. . . the cleanup effort was still going on. He had offered to stay later, but his father had insisted that he return to the palace for rest. He agreed only because he had wanted to check on his little sister.
"I visited Kohana. She's awake, and recovering quickly." Hakeru's voice brought him back to the garden.
"I suppose that she would heal fast, wouldn't she?" Ken recalled how Kohana had healed him once, when he received a nasty gash from an animal while on the hunt.
"I suppose," said Hakeru somewhat distantly. Ken glanced sideways at her.
"Are you okay?" He asked, concern rising in his voice.
"Yes, I'm alright. I'm just trying to sort everything out in my head," she explained. "It's a busy place these days." They passed the celestial fountain and went through towards where the trees were growing at the edge of the maze.
"I don't doubt that," Ken agreed. "Besides having your own problems, you absorb the problems of people around you, too. It's not healthy."
Hakeru shrugged. "You know that it's not intentional. It's part of who I am. When I was younger, I don't think I could understand that it's my gift to people, to be able to help them. I guess I kind of act like a mirror, a way for people to be honest with themselves. I can feel what they feel, and provide a nonbiased opinion of their problems." She smiled a little. "Problem is, I can't provide a nonbiased opinion to myself of my problems."
"Ah, I see what you're getting at." Ken nodded. You don't have an empath to step back and point you in the right direction."
"Yes, kind of." Hakeru agreed.
Ken was quiet for a few seconds, then stepped in front of her. She looked up, surprised at his move. He didn't move towards her, but instead looked into her eyes. He just looked, seeing the light of the stars swimming the bottomless oceans of Prussian blue. When he did speak again, he managed to catch her off guard.
"You're worried about the Princess."
"Well, aren't we all?" She countered.
Ken became more specific. "Yes, but you're worried about her for a different reason. I think you already know the way that this battle on the Moon Kingdom is going to end. You're worried about Chiyo in a different sense. Something else is going to happen, isn't it?"
Hakeru was taken aback. "You're getting better, Ken." He had hoped that she would explain her thoughts, but she merely turned back and walked towards the castle, without saying a word.
Ken couldn't help but smile a little. She couldn't let him discover too much about her at once, now could she?