"Well Daronius, have you said anything to her yet?" A man with black hair asked him.
"No...just leave me alone ok?" He replied to him bitterly.
"You know, you'll never get anywhere with that attitude." The man said to him. "For Peter's sake Daronius, if you don't say something she'll marry a prince from my sector and then you really won't have a chance."
"And why shouldn't she Mares...she deserves a prince." Daronius replied softly as he looked out the window of his office.
"Are you really going to sit there and guard her all day while she prances around with someone else?" Mares continued. "Are you telling me that you would honestly be able to handle seeing her kissed by another, touched by another?"
"Do you honestly believe that I have a chance anyway?" Daronius shot back at him. "For all she knows, I'm just her Captain of the Moon Royal Guard...an annoyance that must be at her side at all times...she'll never see me as more." He said. "Besides...when she does...marry...I'm going to ask to...to be transferred to another sector."
"The captain of the Royal Moon Guard...transferred to another sector?" Mares commented objectively. "I don't think so...she'll want to know why."
"And I'll tell her that I want to retire." He told him agitatedly.
"You're not even 25, you're only 22 in fact!" Mares commented. "You're still young blood." He paused for a moment before continuing. "Look, you can't just sit here while the woman that you love accepts a proposal from a man who obviously does not love her."
"Well that's easy for you to say!" Daronius accused. "You're a prince, Princess Meredith of Mars would have no problems seeing you!" He yelled angrily. "But I'm just...just a d*mn guard...I'm not even worthy to walk in her shadow, let alone hold her."
"For something that is so easy, you make it so hard." Mares finished before leaving the room.
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"Shall we, milady?" Prince Valiant said with a bow to her as he extended his hand.
"By all means." She replied in tone with a nod of her head as she placed her hand in his and then stepped out of the carriage. "Luna!" She called out softly and a black cat jumped from the carriage into her arms. His guards bowed in turn and she nodded her head to them politely, a gesture for them to rise. Daronius spoke to her other guards in the carriage along with the carriage driver before stepping out with two other guards following him.
"I have much to show you Serenity." Prince Valiant said with a smile. "In the end, I believe that you will see my proposal as a very profitable one."
"Since when should marriage be seen as a profitable proposal?" Daronius muttered bitterly as he walked behind Serenity and the Prince.
"Did you say something Daronius?" The guard next to him asked.
"No." He replied astringently.
"Here is where we store food that we feed to the poor who can not afford it." Prince Valiant said to Serenity as he pointed to the various small buildings lined up in a row with guards standing in front of them. "The guards are there to make sure that there is no thievery." He continued.
"What a pleasant arrangement." Serenity stated simply. "Tell me Valiant, where is it that you have the schools for the children?" She asked.
"The schools?"
"Yes, where do the children learn? I am very interested in seeing how that is going." She continued.
"Oh the schools...right this way." He said somewhat nervously as he looked to his first guard who suddenly led the way.
"Probably doesn't even know what a school is." Daronius muttered. When they arrived at one of the school buildings, Serenity determinantly asked that they visit.
"Your majesty, school is still in progress, we can not simply go and intrude." Valiant tried to argue.
"I do not see why not, I shall go unannounced, I do enjoy children and would very much like to see how things go...I do this many times on the moon. I see no reason why I can not do it now." She replied with a firmness that meant there was no changing her mind. She stepped into the school with Daronius and the other guards in tow, leaving a shocked Prince Valiant in her wake before he finally followed her in.
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"Queen Serenity!" The master in charge of the school said in alarm. "I was not expecting you to come here of all places!" He said as he immediately dropped to the floor in humbleness.
"Please rise, there is no need for this now." She said to him and he immediately stood.
"And Prince Valiant, you're here too." The man continued with a look of wonder and somewhat resentment. "I will go and announce your pres-" He began to say to her but she silenced him.
"No, that will not be necessary...I wish to just sit in as a visitor." She said with a smile. With a wave of her hand, a white light flashed, and she was adorning a simple white cotton long sleeve dress that came to her feet and whose sleeves stopped at her elbows from which they flared out. Her hair had disappeared from the royal hairstyle, to be replaced by two braids that started from the top and center of her head and lined the sides of her head until they met at the back. The middle of her head consisted of loose hair that flowed in waves all the way down her back. "Ahh, that's better." She smiled. "Oh, I almost forgot." She said as she tapped her forehead where her sigil sat, and it slowly disappeared. "Now, there should be no problems with me sitting in for one of your younger children's classes...please lead the way."
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"You're pretty." A little girl with long curl red hair and green eyes said to her.
"Why thank-you." Serenity said with a smile. "And you're very beautiful yourself." She continued. "What's you name?"
"Elizabeth." She said shyly as she rocked back and forth.
"Elizabeth, I want you to meet my cat Luna." Serenity said to her. "Luna, Elizabeth, Elizabeth, Luna."
"She had her shots, mommy says I can't touch a cat that's sick!" The girl said in startlement. Serenity giggled as she could feel there was a slight contempt in her cat, but chose to ignore it.
"She's a very healthy cat." Serenity said to the girl. "Go ahead and pet her." She bade the girl and the girl slowly took steps forward towards the cat.
"Hey everybody, come and see this cat!" The girl exclaimed to all the other kids in her class who had not noticed Serenity before. Suddenly all of the children were gathering around Serenity in order to get a good look at Luna.
"No children!" Prince Valiant almost exclaimed, frightening them. "Step back, you can't all come at once!" He continued. Serenity turned and gave him a look of wonder at this change in behavior before turning back to the children.
"It's ok, you can come." She said to them softly. "She's a special cat, so be gentle." She said with a smile.
"I used to have a cat like this one, but then mine ran away." One of the kids explained to her. "You better watch your cat, otherwise she may run away too." He warned her with a toothy grin.
"I don't think she's going anywhere, she likes being with me." Serenity replied. "Where's your teacher?" She suddenly asked.
"I dunno." One of the kids replied nonchalantly as if it was a normal day of life. "Can your cat do tricks?" Serenity looked up at Valiant for a second with a look that said we'll discuss this later before turning back to the kids.
"No, she doesn't do tricks." Serenity smiled. "She's just a plain old house cat."
"Oh." Another child replied.
"You mean she can't jump, or...or get your shoes?" Elizabeth asked her incredulously.
"I'm afraid not." Serenity replied and inwardly winced when she felt one of Luna's claws scratch her skin. "I sure do wish she did...that would be lovely wouldn't it?" She said and winced again when she felt that same claw on her skin.
"Could you read us a book?" Another little girl asked.
"Serenity, I believe that it is about time that we be going." Valiant said, slightly irritated that the kids were preoccupying her time with trifling matters.
"No, I wish to stay longer." She said as she took the book from the child's hands and sat down on the floor with Luna at her feet.
"And the rest of the tour, what shall we do about that?" He asked in an agitated manner.
"They can wait." Serenity stated simply as the children began to gather at her feet. "I'm entertaining the children." She ended as she turned her attention to them to see that suddenly all the boys had disappeared and only the girls were at her feet. She searched the room for them, and spotted them near an old and tattered window where Daronius stood. Two of the boys were currently occupying a space beneath each of his arms, while another was on his back. It appeared that he has currently in the middle of giving them a ride of sorts as they screamed and yelled happily from their positions. Those who were still on the floor were jumping up and down awaiting their turn. Serenity smiled at the silly picture Daronius made as he twirled the kids on his back. She looked at the girls who sat in front of her with reluctant yet pleading looks in their eyes before nodding her head to them. They smiled before jumping up and running to Daronius as well. And for the first time, Serenity got a chance to look at his sunny disposition. The uptight always-serious Captain of her Royal Moon Guard wasn't so uptight after all. And now that she had a chance to think about it, he was kinda of cute as well, she thought with a smile. His sun golden hair brought out an effervescent beauty in his sea blue orbs that made her almost loose thought. Noticing her preoccupied glance, Prince Valiant immediately interceded.
"Your highness, we must be going." He said to her.
"Where are these kids teachers?" She said as she turned to him, remembered what she had put aside for later.
"I do not know, I am not in charge of these schools."
"Aren't you?" She said with a not amused look on her face as she passed her hand lightly over the down of Luna's back. "You are a prince of the sector are you not, and the governor thereof?"
"Serenity, I manage over what I can, not everything is in my jurisdiction." He paused. "I provide the means so that things can be done, but am I to also make sure that they are used? It's like placing a plate of food in front of a child...do you think you should have to wait to tell the child to eat? No, if the child is hungry, then he will most likely eat on his own accord." He finished.
"Perhaps." Serenity replied softly. "We'll discuss this further later." She finished as she approached the area where Daronius was with the children. When she walked over there, she called his name but he didn't seem to hear her at all. "Ahem!" She cleared her throat, startling him as he quickly turned around, spinning the children that were clinging to his body in the process. He smiled sheepishly when he saw her standing there and tapping her feet with her arms crossed. She thought that he looked awfully cute now with that look of innocence he gave her. "We are about to leave." She said to him as she quickly turned to avoid his gaze.
"Um...sorry, I hadn't realized that I was keeping you." He said as he immediately began to put the children down who started sighing at the thought of seeing him go.
"No...it's no problem." She said with a smile as she looked at him. "I'm sorry children, but we are going to have to leave." She said to them.
"Awwwww." They all said in unison.
"Can you stay for a little longer?" Some of them pleaded.
"I know...you can be our teacher!" One of the kids exclaimed and all the others began to jump up and down in agreement. Serenity only giggled at their merriment, yet at the same time she felt reluctant at knowing she would have to leave.
"Uh...I'll see what we can arrange." Serenity said to them. "But for now children, I must go." She told them once more as she bent down to their level and they ran up to hug her, feeling somehow connected by this beautiful angel who walked into their classroom.
"Now say by to Luna." She said to them with a smile.
"By Luna!" They all said in unison as they reached forward and petted her black furry down.
"But wait!" Elizabeth exclaimed from within the group. "You didn't even get your ride!" She told her.
"Excuse me?" Serenity said softly with a look of confusion on her face.
"Your have to ride mister's back!" Another exclaimed. Valiant, getting the gist of what the kids were saying immediately stepped forward.
"I'm sorry, but your highness, I must say that this is where this must all end." He said firmly. "I can not continue to allow you to waste you time here any longer."
"Since when have you become my advisor that you may tell me what it is that I may do with my life and when I am allowed to go or stay?" She questioned him irritatingly. Man, she wasn't even with this guy for two hours yet and he was already starting to irritate her, how could she even think she would be able to stay with him for a lifetime. "I do as I please, when I please." She ended firmly before looking towards the kids to figure out what it was they were asking of her. "Tell you what, I shall do one last thing for you before I go." She said with a smile. "Now, show me what it is you want." She said to Elizabeth who grinned a huge grin before taking her by the hand and leading her over to where Daronius stood. Suddenly understanding what it was that the kids wanted, Daronius immediately began to spew off excuses as to why she could not do what they were asking.
"No children...I...I don't think...I mean...we really do not have the time to..."
"Nonsense." Serenity said with a smile surprising him. "I'm sure it would be delightful, unless you are saying no...after all, I am a woman of my word."
"N-no, I would not d-dare refuse." He said as he turned so that she could mount his back.
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"Why is it these children do not have teachers?" Serenity asked the schoolmaster.
"I'm sorry Serenity that you have come and met us at such poor conditions, but we can no longer afford to pay as much teachers to come and teach the children, and they can not afford to work for free."
"Why is it that you have suddenly come to a depletion in proper funds?" Serenity asked.
"We were cut off in the usual funds provided by the government so that we could afford to pay the teachers, the government called our school an unnecessary luxury."
"So what do you do now?" She asked him concerned. "What do the kids do without a teacher?"
"The parents need someplace to send their kids because they must work much harder to make a living...so we allow them to come here." He continued. "There are only three of us left and 5 classrooms, I am a teacher as well as the master of the school." He continued. "We rotate which classes get taught each day."
"How sad." Serenity said as she shot a glance at Valiant, who stood behind the schoolmaster. "And what of the kids in the classroom that I just visited?"
"They are orphans your highness." The schoolmaster replied sadly. "The orphanage has recently become flooded, and they had no other place to go." He finished.
"Well, they do now." Serenity replied with a smile as she turned towards Daronius. "Please make the arrangements to transport these kids to the moon, where I want a teacher set up, and bed rooms so that they may stay in the palace until a home may be built with a governess where they can live permanently."
"Yes your majesty." Daronius replied with a nod as he began talking to his guards.
"Thank-you your majesty!" The schoolmaster said to her happily with tears in his eyes. "Thank-you very much, you are truly a kind soul."
"As for the conditions of this school...I trust that special arrangements shall be made." She said as she looked towards Prince Valiant sternly.
"Yes your majesty."
"I shall be watching the progress of this school in particular, do not disappoint me in any matter." She finished before walking away, Daronius in tow.
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"Well, that was rather...interesting." She with a smile as she got into the carriage with Daronius on her heels.
"Your highness, will I have the pleasure of your company another time?" Valiant asked anxiously.
"I do not think so Valiant, but you shall receive my response to your proposal tonight, as I shall think it over." Serenity ended before looking Daronius. "I'm ready." She said to him.
"Alright, let's go." He said to the carriage driver who pressed a button on the carriage console and then began to slap the horses to go. Almost immediately there carriage disappeared in a streak of yellow lights.
"You know...you didn't have to entertain their ignorance." A small voice spoke up.
"But Luna, it was so much fun." Serenity giggled as she stepped out of the carriage in the transporter room with the aide of Daronius. "They were so cute." She commented as she placed her on the ground. "Say...why can't you do tricks Luna?" Serenity asked with a smile as she walked out the room with Luna at her feet and Daronius behind her.
"Serenity!" Luna huffed. "I am not a house pet...I'm your Royal Advisor!" She said in an agitated manner that only caused Serenity to laugh harder.
"Don't scratch me so hard next time, that kinda hurt." Serenity pouted.
"Well you deserved it." Luna replied with a smile on her face.
"O Luna...if you're not a house pet, then why is it they find empty sardine cans and tuna on the floor almost every night. For a Royal Advisor, you sure are sloppy." She said with a smile causing Daronius to lightly chuckle behind them.
"You know about that?" Luna asked in shock.
"No, actually I just made it up...thanks for confessing though." She said with a winning smile.
"How do you always do that?" Luna said with a smile as they turned a corner and walked down another hallway.
"Say Luna, what did you think of Prince Valiant anyway?"
"I don't know princess...he seems kinda...oh I don't know...withdrawn." Luna replied.
"I noticed that too...when he was showing me around the city, it seemed as if he never walked their streets before." She replied in thought. Then without warning she turned stopped in her tracks and turned to Daronius. "What did you think?"
"M-me?" He asked unbelievingly. Was she really asking him? This was the perfect opportunity, all he would have to do is tell her what a stuck-up egotistical jerk that guy was and perhaps she would take his word for it and the proposal would be over just like that! But as he looked at her eyes, he could barely form the words. "W-well...h-he...he's a prince." Daronius quickly spat and then mentally beat himself upside the head.
"Uh thanks...I'll take that into consideration." Serenity said in confusion at the dumbfounded look he had on his face before turning and walking to her office door where her secretary stood guard. "Good Morning Judith...what news have we today?"
"Your sister bellowed." Judith said to her. "Says that she's sending over Artemis for Luna to play with cause he's...aggravating her." The secretary replied.
"Well I never." Luna said in a dignified manner causing everyone to laugh lightly.
"Oh that would be good, he can get Luna off my back as well."
"Serenity!" Luna said in shock.
"Oh Luna...calm down, I am merely having a little fun." Serenity replied with a smile. "Speaking of Artemis." Serenity said just as she saw him approach them in the hall. "Hello Artemis, how was your trip here?" She said as she bent down, allowing him to jump in her arms.
"It was alright." He said with a yawn as she scratched his back. "Mmmm that feels really good."
"You're such a good cat Artemis."
"Hey what about me?" Luna said front her position on the floor.
"Oh hey Luna." Artemis called out to her.
"But you're not a cat Luna, you're my Royal Advisor remember?" Serenity said with a smile, knowing she had caught Luna in her words. She put Artemis down on the carpet before standing once more. "I'm going to my office for a bit to think, I wish not to be disturbed, after all, this is a very important decision that I must make."
"Do you have any idea what you are going to do?" Artemis asked her.
"No Artemis, but, so far...he has the best offer yet...and time is wearing thin." Serenity continued. "Oh and Daronius...thanks for the ride." She replied with a smile before stepping in her private thinking room, causing his face to flush red.