Chapter 44: Jealousy
"You told him we were coming?" Sailor Uranus exploded as Sailor Star Shooter exited the infirmary. She walked at a quick pace as if she would be able to out walk the onslaught of questions.
"Sapphire knew, he was listening to us at Usagi's place." Shooter informed her, she sped up a bit but since Uranus had such long legs it didn't take long for her to find a pace that didn't have her jogging.
"And you didn't stop him from leaving?" Sailor Neptune questioned from the right side of Sailor Star Shooter.
"He said he wouldn't tell Demando." She answered with an impatient sigh.
"Like we can trust him." Neptune snapped.
"We can." Sailor Star Shooter insisted. She stopped walking and stood in the middle of the hallway. She regarded Sailor Neptune and Sailor Uranus with a glare. The two of them glared back. "Go ahead and believe what you want but he's staying here, and I'm going to make sure he makes a full recovery. Deal with it." She regarded them one last time before brushing past them.
"Unbelievable." Sailor Uranus muttered as she and Sailor Neptune headed back towards the infirmary. "Why don't you talk some sense into her?" Sailor Neptune suggested when she noticed the Starlight Knight was sitting on the ground outside of the room.
"She can befriend and trust whomever she wants." He answered with a shrug. "I can't stop her." He continued to look at the opposite wall. Sailor Uranus noticed that he was slowly wringing his hands and had a slight angered look in his eyes.
"You love her, don't you?" she questioned.
The Starlight Knight slowly lifted his head. He shifted his eyes between the two of them before staring at the wall again. "…Yes, a lot." He finally answered.
"Then do what you think is best for her." Sailor Uranus quickly replied. ""She's already injured badly and if we trust him she could eventually get killed." She added. Sailor Neptune gave him a small smile before the two of them headed down the hallway towards the lobby.
The Starlight Knight continued to sit outside of the infirmary when Sailor Star Shooter returned with a bag of ice. "May I talk to you for a minute?" he asked her when she was close enough to hear.
"Give me a minute, I need to change Sapphires bandages." She walked past him and headed into the infirmary.
"But it's important." He insisted.
"And so are his injuries." Sailor Star Shooter shot back. She placed the bandages and some anti-bacterial ointment on the table next to Sapphire's bed. She then grabbed the remote and slowly raised his bed. "I'm going to try and change your bandages now." She informed him.
"Why don't you wait and do this later?" Sapphire weakly asked when he noticed the Starlight Knight staring at him through the doorway.
"I don't want you to get infected." She shook her head softly while slowly unwrapped thing bandage around his head. She brushed his hair away from the wound on his forehead and started to gently apply the ointment onto it.
"Hey you guys, the bedrooms are all set up." Usagi informed them.
"Usagi, why don't change Sapphire's bandages?" the Starlight Knight suggested while pushing her into the room.
"I'm perfectly capable of-" Sailor Star Shooter started but the Starlight Knight grabbed her by the arm and pulled her towards the doorway.
"You need to clean the wounds first." He called over his shoulder.
"Let me go, please let me go." She begged. The Starlight Knight turned around and noticed that she had a genuine look of fear on her face. He slowly let go of her wrist and watched as her fear suddenly turned into anger. "What's your problem?"
"You tell one of our enemies that we're coming to the moon kingdom and expect him not to tell Demando?" The Starlight Knight bellowed.
"Sapphire didn't tell Demando." She answered simply.
"Just because he claims he does something doesn't mean it's true." He said slowly.
"It's true because I can trust him." Sailor Star Shooter crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him.
"Why?" The Starlight Knight demanded.
"Because he tried to help withstand the darkness." She explained.
--
"Stop crying." Prince Demando ordered as he slipped his shirt back on. Stephie-chan continued to lie on the ground, her legs curled up towards her chest, her arms covering her breasts as she shook from head to toe. "I said stop." He unbuckled his belt and whipped her back.
Stephie-chan let out a loud scream as her back turned red and swelled. She screamed again when she felt the sting of the whip again and again. Eventually her sobs slowed down and she remained silent while on the ground.
"I don't see why you're crying." Prince Demando spat while tying his cloak around his shoulders. "I'm just making you tougher." He explained while stepping over her body and heading towards the door. He opened it and stepped off to the side. "Now get out." He said harshly.
Stephie-chan struggled slowly to her feet and shuffled to the door. Tears were still streaming down her cheeks when she passed him. Prince Demando pushed her hard on her back. She fell flat on her face outside of his door. He just stared at her for a couple of seconds and then slammed the door shut.
She pushed herself back up and rubbed the blood away from the corner of her mouth. She rested her hand against the wall and stumbled down the cold hallway. One of the doors ahead of her opened and Sapphire stepped out. He looked around and when his eyes met hers she felt a chill run up her spine.
"Leave me alone." Stephie-chan backed away. " Don't get any closer." She whimpered.
"I'm not going to hurt you." Sapphire insisted while getting closer.
"I said stay away." She screamed.
"Calm down." He said softly.
"No, go away." Stephie-chan glared at him.
"Trust me." Sapphire locked eyes with her again. "If I hurt you in any way you can leave. I just want to help you." He said while slowly holding out his hand. She looked at it for a couple of seconds before slowly placing her hand in his. "Come on." He said and led her towards his bedroom.
Stephie-chan paused in the doorway as he closed the door behind them. "Here, to help cover yourself up." Sapphire said while pulling out a pair of pants and a long t-shirt. He held it out an arm's length away. She reluctantly grabbed hold of the clothes and started to put them on.
"Here let me clean up your back." He mentioned for her to sit with her back facing him on the edge of the bed. Stephie-chan slowly made her way to the bed. She sat on the edge of the bed and pulled her legs up to her chest. She flinched when he took a seat behind her and started to roll up the back of her shirt.
"Why are you being so nice to me?" Stephie-chan muttered.
"Someone has to be." He answered while rubbing some ointment onto her back.
"But-" she started.
"Just because we're brothers doesn't mean we have the same views on everything." Sapphire shook his head. Stephie-chan nodded silently and stared at her reflection in the mirror. "You don't deserve to be treated like this." He muttered into her ear as their eyes locked in the mirror.
--
"So you think you need to return the favor?" the Starlight Knight questioned.
"What are you so upset about?" Sailor Star Shooter threw her hands up n the air.
"If you've forgotten we're destined to be together." He answered as if it were obvious.
"Yeah, destined as in not right now." She responded.
"What are you saying?" The Starlight Knight whispered. Sailor Star Shooter noticed the hurt expression on his face but her anger made her continue.
"I don't love you Seth." Sailor Star Shooter stated.
"But you love him." He glared.
"I didn't say that." She shook her head.
"You didn't have to." The Starlight Knight snapped. He pulled out the white rose from underneath his cloak. It was the same one he gave to her when he tried to apologize during her first day of school. He held it out in front of her and ripped it in half before throwing it to her feet. As he turned to leave he deliberately slammed his right shoulder into her left. Sailor Star Shooter grimaced and grabbed a hold of it as pain shot up her arm and her chest.
