Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon

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"All changes have their melancholy, for what we leave behind us is a part of ourselves; we must die to one life before we can enter another."
-Anatole France

Mare Serenitatis, Moon Kingdom
Royal Palace

Princess Serenity sat in front of her extravagant looking-glass, trying to ignore the haunted look that was surrounding her reflection. She brushed her hair slowly, knowing it might be the last time she could do so and consider it her own and not the property of her husband. She tried to concentrate on the soothing, methodical insertion of the pearlescent comb slipping into her flaxen tresses and sliding through with ease.

Serenity found her mind wandering, and as her comb strokes became more and more languid, her thoughts returned to her doubts and anxiety. Shunning the presence of her maids in favor of spending her last night alone, she sat and ruminated on the misery of her arranged marriage.

I don't want to marry him, Serenity thought bitterly. I don't want a hero. I want a man.

"I don't even know him!" the exclamation fell from her lips, unbidden. Uncharacteristically apprehensive that someone overheard her, she glanced uncertainly around her quarters. For the first time, a decision she truly couldn't fight was being forced upon her, and Serenity knew she was powerless to change it. Her mother, Queen Selenity, had delighted in the idea of matching her daughter to the Terran prince.

I must travel many miles to Earth, thought Serenity resentfully. I must leave my mother and my home. The moon is my home... I don't want to leave it for someone I've never met! Endymion, a man accustomed to brutality and violence; he will control me because he does not understand how I am.

In a rare fit of temper, Serenity hurled her comb into the wall beside her mirror. The delicate ornament shattered, neither accustomed nor designed for such abuse, and she rushed over to collect the pieces. As she pieced together the shattered teeth of the comb, her body was racked with sobs.

"Mother," she wept, saltine tears trickling down her crestfallen face. "I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to break your comb."

Serenity crushed the fragments into her palm and leaned against the wall, drawing in a shaky breath as she tightened the reigns over her emotions. The cold temperature of the alabaster wall cut through her sleeping gown quite sharply, but the iciness helped to clear her head. She sighed, noiselessly easing down against the wall in a jumble of silk. She slumped to the floor, drained and defeated.

I cannot arrive to Golden Kingdom like this, Serenity thought listlessly. Her hand dropped at her side, spilling the contents to the floor. As the infinitesimal comb remnants skittered and rolled across the marble, she ignored the tiny sounds and stared at the vaulted ceiling.

My ceiling is so high, yet it contains this massive room, Serenity thought sadly. Maybe I will be this room, and Endymion will limit me as well.

Serenity spent the night huddled against the wall of her chamber. In the morning, her maids found her and bade her to ready herself for the journey. Unnerved at her unusual compliance, the servants did not complain; the princess was not a troublemaker by any stretch of the imagination, but her disdain of the marriage was well known and the maids were troubled when she apparently stopped fighting.

Allowing herself to be dressed and primped by her maids, Serenity sat stoically as she was attended to. Usually preferring to do such things herself, she was determined not to take actions that would be deemed cooperative short of being problematic.

A soft knock on the chamber door caused her to jolt.

"Daughter?" a voice asked tentatively.

I'd be careful, too, after agreeing to marry off my only child to a complete stranger, thought Serenity acrimoniously.

"Yes, Mother?" she answered sweetly. She reminded herself that though the decision was beneficial for her mother, it was also beneficial for her. Using her connections, Queen Selenity had arranged for the marriage in the hopes that her daughter could live in a renowned kingdom where she would be safe.

"Leave us," she commanded the maids, who instantly fled. She shut the door that the last maid carelessly - or not so carelessly, thought Serenity wryly - left ajar behind her. After securing it closed, her mother turned to her and studied her carefully.

"Serenity," she addressed softly, her beautiful face bestowing a gentle, yet sad smile. "This world is an unfair place and, unfortunately, we are all pawns in it."

"Mother, I-"

Queen Selenity held up a hand, causing her words to stop short. "I am sorry that you, daughter, are a victim of your times. I know you are unhappy, but I do not wish for you to leave this place harboring feelings of resentment. I would be greatly pained if the last memories I would have of you were sad. You're my only child, daughter; your inner strength rivals the combined might of any of my fiercest warriors. I am proud of you, my Serenity."

"Why can you not accompany me to Earth?" the princess inquired, abandoning her anger, knowing it was fruitless. "If I am to be married, you should at least be there to preside over the ceremony. King Elrond would want to see you after all these years, too, Mother."

Queen Selenity shook her head. "Once you are there, it will be even harder to let me go if I were to accompany you," she reasoned. "I am not going to be a part of your new life, Serenity. You must accept that."

"I know, but-" she choked on a sob. "I'm afraid, Mother."

The queen chuckled softly. "My darling daughter, afraid of a man?" she teased lightly, but drew her daughter closer at the look of anguish that crossed her delicate features. Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, she held her reassuringly.

"Prince Endymion is not to be feared," Queen Selenity promised. "I met him while he was in his youth. The boy was very killed with a javelin and remarkable with a sword. He is now a man of honor; he will protect you."

"Who told you that?" questioned Serenity, peering at her intently.

To the princess's dismay, her mother laughed again. "It's nice to see that you're finally interested in the man you're going to marry."

"Mother, who told you that Endymion is a good man?" persisted Serenity. "It would be his father's duty to do so, and if the Terran king is responsible for your high opinion of the prince then I fear I shall remain skeptical."

"Elrond is a trusted friend. He would not lie, Serenity," the queen told her solemnly. "Even on behalf of his own son."

"How do you know?" asked Serenity, narrowing her eyes.

"Because I was originally going to arrange your marriage to the prince's younger brother, Demande," Queen Selenity revealed. "He was the better looking of the two lads, so naturally I thought of him first."

Serenity made a sound of disgust when her mother winked at her, obviously teasing her again.

"Elrond told me, after I described you to him, that you would be too strong for Prince Demande," the queen explained. "Though Elrond loves both his sons, he said that his oldest is the better man to marry. He will be faithful to you and true to any promises he makes. Besides, Demande is too short for you."

Giving her mother a good-natured shove, Serenity freed herself from her grasp. "You're hopeless, Mother."

"But there's still hope for you yet, daughter," Queen Selenity continued. "Perhaps Endymion can tame all of that strength you have in you."

"Only the man I love will be able to do that," swore Serenity.

Sighing patiently, Queen Selenity gazed fondly at her daughter. "This...is possibly the very last time I shall lay eyes on you. I want to remember it always, fondly in my heart." She drew her daughter to her, kissing her hair as she held her in their home one last time.

A/N: Reviews are always appreciated! :)