The FINALE!
This story is rated PG for language and stuff (Nothing serious, so don't
worry. The worse thing possible would be the word "damn" (^_^))
Oh yeah, PLEASE email me and tell me what you think of my story.
Critiques, compliments, suggestions, questions, anything would be fine.
Just FEED MY EMAIL INBOX! I think it will die of starvation soon!
Usual disclaimers: Sailor Moon and all its characters and likeliness
belongs to Naoko Takeuchi, Kodansha/Toei. English translation is made
possible by DiC.
My email address: ml_eclipse@hotmail.com
= thoughts
[ ] = author's note
Thanks to all who have emailed me! More Author's Notes at bottom ^_^
Well, enough of my babbling! Enjoy!
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================= Bloom of the Crystal Rose ==================
by Cosmos
============================
The Last Petal: Full Bloom
Just as she stepped through the gateway she heard a voice calling to her
frantically, "Serena! Serena, there you are. Please you must come with
me quickly!"
Serena looked at Mercury in surprise. "What's wrong, Mercury? What
happened?"
"Hurry, there is no time to talk now! Darien wants to talk to you
immediately. He said it is urgent!" she cried in distress.
Darien? She nodded and quickly followed the blue hair soldier into
the palace. She was led into a large throne room and the magnificent door
closed silently behind her.
Serena looked around the room in awe. A beautiful red velvet carpet with
intricate designs stretched from the doorway up to the platform where two
golden thrones were placed. Grand ocean-blue silk curtains cascaded down
from the tall ceiling covering large magnificent windows on either side of
the room. Beautiful handcrafted chandeliers hung low from the ceiling
illuminating this rich room. She looked around and saw his slump form on
the bottom steps of the platform leading to the two thrones. His
heart-throbbing blue eyes were gazing at her with grief. His face looked so
worn and tired. She could see that he hadn't slept much during the past
days. Her heart ached to hold him, to comfort him, and to wipe away that
sadness in his eyes.
He just sat there gazing at her as if this was the first time he has seen
her. Serena, I love you, he wanted to say…he wanted to scream to her,
but nothing came out of his mouth. He simply looked at her with longing,
with the desire to embrace her and feel her warmth against his body. He
wanted to kiss those soft pink lips of hers and to run his hands through
her long golden silk hair.
The silence was unbearable. It weighed heavily on their souls and hearts.
Each held back strong desires to comfort the other, and the tears that
threatened them. She couldn't stand this anymore. This silence was too
much for her mind. She wanted him to speak, to cry, to laugh, to yell,
anything that would break this silence, but he did neither. He only sat
there staring at her too overcome by sorrow to move.
Finally he spoke, "There is something I have to tell you."
She opened her mouth to speak but he cut her off. "Don't worry," he said
gravely, "I won't lecture you on my love for you. I know you don't want
to hear it, nor do you care for it."
What are you saying Darien? Her heart cried. Please don't say that to
me! Go on! Rant about your love for me! Try to persuade me but don't give
up on me!
"I have asked Mercury to bring you here for one reason," he continued
staring absentmindedly at the curtains floating so gently in the soft
breeze. "I have decided to return you to your world before this day ends."
"What?" she said in surprise. Although she knew of this she did not expect
it to be so soon.
"I have been told that the Dark Empress will attack the Earth Palace soon
and I don't want you to be here when she does."
"But isn't that why I'm here in the first place," she cried. "I'm suppose
to help you remember?"
He returned his gaze to her face and saw tears glistening in her sapphire
eyes. "Why are you crying?" he asked her suddenly.
Startled, she looked at him for a moment. "B-because," she stammered.
She let her gaze fall to the floor and her statement unfinished.
He looked at her intently, taking in her hair, her eyes, basically taking
in everything about her to lock in his memory because he feared that this
would be the last time he may see her. "I thought that you had wanted to
return to your world?" he whispered.
"I never said that," she said softly. "But I don't really have a choice
do I?"
"Serena--"
"Don't Darien," she stopped him gently, "I know. There is nothing you can
do, but you can at least let me stay until this war is over. Let me help
you. It is why I'm here isn't it?"
"I don't know. I don't know why the crystal brought you here anymore.
It may have been better if you were still back where you were. At least
you won't be caught in this war and perhaps get yourself killed. Serena,
I don't want to see you get hurt." He gazed into her eyes and held it.
"I don't want to see you harmed. I have promised you that I would never
let anyone harm you…and I will keep that promise."
Darien…
"Please Serena," his eyes begged her, "please do what I say and leave.
The Dark Empress is too powerful for any of us to fight her. Our defeat
is inevitable. We may not have a choice, but you do. You can escape by
leaving this world. Maybe later your life will turn out better. You might
suddenly rediscover your memories and your family. You might
even…you might even…find someone who will love you the way you deserve to
be loved."
She could tell that all this was killing him inside. It was killing her
also. "No Darien!" she cried. "I will not leave!"
He looked at her in surprise. "You were right, you have no choice in
this. You will go!"
"I will not!" she argued back. "And you cannot make me!"
"I have the power to send you wherever I want, Serena!" he snapped back at
her, angry that she would be foolish enough to want to stay and get herself
killed. "And I certainly have the power to force you into going!"
Furious, she strutted over to him and looked down at him with a face
flushed with anger. "No you don't," she said in a low voice as she stepped
closer to him. "Not when I do this…" And she clasped his face between
her hands and pressed her lips against his in a passionate kiss of
defiance. He groaned in surprise as he felt her soft lips pressed
forcefully onto his. A sudden feeling of intense energy swept through his
body as he felt her hand comb through his silky black hair. He closed his
eyes and let the warmth enclosed around him. His hands went out and
wrapped themselves around her waist, pulling her down to him.
She could feel his warm body pressed close to hers and his arms around her
waist tightened as if he was afraid she might disappear. I will never
leave you, her heart said, I can never leave you.
They both held desperately onto that passionate kiss fearing that this may
be their last. Their lungs screamed for air, but they tried to ignore it
until the hot pain in their chest forced them to separate. Breathing
heavily, he leaned his forehead against hers and looked into her azure
eyes.
"Oh, Serena," he sighed sadly. "Why did you do that? Why do you want to
stay with me only to be caught up in this war."
"Because I can't imagine ever being without you. Darien, I don't want to
lose you. If I must die, I would rather die with you."
A tear escaped his eye as he looked at her. "Serena," he cried, "I don't
want to see you suffer. I don't want to see you get hurt. W-why can't
you just go and be safe?"
"Because I can never leave you, my love."
"I wish things would be better for you, my dear Serena. I wish you had
fallen in love with someone else in your world, so that you wouldn't end
up here with me. I want to take you away from this place to escape the
fate that I am cursed with. You deserve so much more than all this pain
I've brought onto you." He buried his face in her golden hair and cried
in great sobs that shook his entire body.
"You have brought nothing but joy, Darien. I have never known what love
and happiness was until you showed them to me. You have given me more
than I can ever ask for…more than I truly deserve. You have given me
friendship and undying love. That is all I could ever want." She held
him close to her as he cried out all his pain. She could feel tears of
sorrow flood her eyes as well. Seeing him in so much anguish made her
entire being cry with him. "Things will turn out well, Darien. You'll
see."
She was not sure why she said that. Realistically, things could not have
looked more hopeless. Yet, something deep within her told her that things
would end well. She wondered why she felt this way.
She held him for a long time, long after his tears have stopped, long
after his body ceased to shake, and long after her heart ceased to cry.
They did not know how long they sat within each other's warm embrace, but
to them time was meaningless. It could be for all eternity; they did not
care as long as they have each other.
They both wished that time would stop so that they could be this way for
always. Protected by each other's love, by each other's embrace, nothing
could tear them apart; yet there was fear in their hearts. It was this
fear that destroyed the perfection of this moment. They knew that this
might be their last moments together, the last time they would see each
other. Outside they could see the dark storm that was blowing their way.
Even the moon and the very stars of heaven have retreated behind those
dark clouds now descending upon them. As if to prove their fears correct,
a mighty flash of lightning sliced across the dark sky like a saber of the
dark warriors, followed by the ominous roar of thunder signaling the
beginning of their dire battle.
Horrendous screams and evil laughter invaded their minds. They quickly
snapped their gazes toward the door when it slammed opened to reveal
Mercury leaning against the door weakly, covered in blood.
"Endymion," she cried weakly, "we're under attack…the Dark
Empress…she attacked sooner than we had expected." Too weak to stand
anymore, the young blue soldier slumped heavily onto the ground.
"Mercury!" Serena cried, running quickly toward her. "Mercury? Mercury
come on wake up!"
Mercury did not move nor did she even open her eyes. "No," Serena
whispered in grief. "Don't die, oh please don't die."
"Come on Serena!" Darien shouted, "You must leave here quickly!"
She turned her attention to him with a determined look in her bright blue
eyes. "I am staying." He looked at her tenderly knowing full well that
she would not go. He shook his head hopelessly and finally nodded.
"Here," he said, "take my sword."
"But I can't! What would you defend yourself with?"
He looked at her distressed face and gave her a quirky grin. "I have more
powers up my sleeves than you could imagine," he whispered to her.
"Take it."
She nodded and grabbed his golden sword as they both ran outside to face
their worse fears. The destruction of the palace was beyond her belief.
Once a beautiful rose garden was now a hellhole. How could one person
hold so much power of destruction? And how could one be so evil?
A roar from behind them quickly snapped her attention back to the battle.
She raised the sword up skillfully blocking a deadly attack. After
defeating several of the shadow warriors, a scream sliced into her mind.
She quickly turned her head to see Malachite and Marcasite screaming out
warnings at three people she could barely make out through the dust and
blood of the battle. Yet, from what she could see the warning came too
late as she saw three bodies sent flying through the air from an attack
by the Dark Empress.
She quickly ran over to them. The site shocked her into tears. Upon her
arrival she saw Malachite hold a blonde girl while Marcasite cradled
another girl. Through the blood and bruises she was able to make out the
faces of Sailor Venus, Sailor Pluto, and Chrysolite whom was lying nearby.
"No," she whispered in tears. Despite the roar of the battle around her,
all she could hear were the devastated words that Marcasite and Malachite
were whispering to their loves.
"Lovely Venus," she heard Malachite whispered with a voice torn deep into
his soul. "My lovely Venus, please don't leave me. How can I live without
you?"
"Dearest Pluto," she heard Marcasite barely whispered choked with tears.
"How can this happen to you? You should not suffer anymore than what you
had been through the last couple of days. Oh, my love, please forgive me.
I promised to be with you always and yet I felled to be with you when you
needed me most. I should have been there to protect you. I should have
taken that blast not you. Oh, my Time goddess…" And he let his voice
trailed off into inaudible whispers of grief.
Serena stood there in shock. Unbelievable grief coursed through her soul
like a raging fire. No, she kept saying to herself. This can't be.
They cannot…must not die. Tears streamed down her face like an
unrelenting river as sorrow's blade seared through her heart.
They were such kind people…Venus…Pluto…all of them. They don't deserve
this. No one deserves this.
Suddenly a painful moan near her feet caught her attention. "Chrysolite!"
she cried bending down to support his head in her lap. "Oh, dear
friend…hang on," she whispered to him. He opened his eyes slowly and
looked painfully at her. She could no longer see the laughter that was
once in his lovely olive-green eyes. Now, all she could see was the pain
that coursed through his body and through his heart.
"Serena," he whispered. His body shook with each painful breath he took.
"Listen to Endymion…leave…this…world. Save…yourself…while…you still can."
"How could I?" she whispered through her tears, "How could I leave you all
to suffer like this. I cannot leave you, my friend. Not when you need me
most."
He attempted a smile, but the pain prevented him from doing so. "You…are
so kind, Serena…I wish…we could…have more time…to spend together…all of
us." He took a deep painful gasp and continued, "but…I'm afraid…fate
has…not been…kind to us." She could hear his breathing becoming shallower
with each word he spoke.
"No, Chrysolite, please don't die," she cried, "don't leave us."
"I…do not…want to…Serena, but I cannot…hold on…much longer…At least…I
will…not be…alone for very long."
"What do you mean?"
"My…lovely Neptune…is waiting for me…up there." He gave her a long sad
look as his breathing slowly decreased and ceased altogether. He gave
her hand a slight squeeze as if to say farewell, then he closed his eyes
to never open them again.
"NO!" She screamed. "Chrysolite…my dear friend…no."
"Serena watch out!" she heard Malachite shouted as she felt herself being
shoved out of the way of an incoming attack from the Dark Empress. As she
rolled over onto the ground, she quickly snapped her head back only to
see both Malachite and Marcasite get killed by the attack.
No, her heart cried, NO! Make this stop! Make this end! No more
deaths…please…no more pain…
Her mind was too overcome with grief at the lost of her friends that she
did not notice the Dark Empress appear from behind her about to attack her.
Darien, however, saw this and immediately ran toward her shouting,
"SEREEEENNNNAAA!"
She heard his voice and spun around in time to see a tall woman with long
crimson hair flowing around her like the dying light of the sun. The Dark
Empress gave her a deadly smile while releasing a large number of deadly
dark ice crystals at her. There was no time for her to jump out of the
way. She stood there with horror reflecting in her lovely tear stained
eyes.
Suddenly, like slow motion photography, she saw Darien jumped at her
pushing her out of the way just as the ice crystals pierced into his
chest. His face contorted into a painful expression while a cry of
pain escaped his mouth. His limp bloody body slumped heavily upon hers
as they both fell to the ground.
"NOOOO!" she cried in a soul searing, heartbreaking sound of agony.
"Darien!" She scrambled to turn him over and placed his head gently on
her lap. Tears drifted down her face like droplets of rain, caressing his
face gently. "Darien? No, please Darien…open your eyes…wake up my love,"
she cried in a desperate tone full of sorrow.
"Serena," he barely whispered, pain and sorrow invading his deep blue eyes.
"Darien, please don't leave me," she cried. "You promised you would
always be there. Darien…"
"Serena," he whispered to her as his hand slowly raised to wipe away her
tears. "Please, don't cry. I…don't want…to see…you suffer. Oh my
love…I want…so much…to spend…the rest of my life…with you, but I fear…"
"No, Darien," she yelled at him. "Don't you dare say it! Don't you dare
think that! You will live! Do you hear me? You will live!"
"My lovely Serena," he barely whispered as his breathing began to come in
sharp painful gasps, "I want you to know…that I don't…care about the
Laws…I would have let…you stay with…me even if I know…I will be breaking
the Laws of Time. If you…were sent back…I would have followed…you to your
world…I would follow you until…the very ends of Time."
"Darien…," she whispered through her tears.
"Always remember, Serena," he whispered. His eyelids becoming heavy and
he can barely fight back the darkness that now raged just barely beneath
the surface. "I love you…I will…always love you." He can no longer fight
it. He can no longer defy the darkness now overwhelming him. He looked up
at her as his eyes slowly dim and his vision fading into darkness. He
felt himself drifting into a deep sleep, a sleep he feared he would never
awaken from. He could still feel her warmth drifting into his body. He
grasped onto that warmth in his last attempt to hang on to her. But his
grip weakened until he could no longer hold on. Slowly, he felt his body
go cold and his mind felt like it was falling, falling into some unknown
darkness waiting for him somewhere out there, a darkness that would bar
him from his angel.
"Darien?" she cried, but his eyes did not open. "Daarrriieeenn! Please
don't leave me! My love, don't you leave me! I-I-haven't even told you
that I love you." Her vision began to blur as tears escaped her cerulean
eyes. She bent her head closer to him until her lips were barely above
his and she whispered, almost breathing the very words into his soul,
"I love you." She closed her eyes as grief seared through her heart, as
her soul raged in a chaotic mixture of emotions. She knew that she said it
too late. She knew that he did not…could not hear her.
Yet, she did not know that he *did* hear her.
Suddenly, a beautiful pristine tear escaped her eye, slowly drifting down
to his face, but instead of touching his soft skin, it stopped falling
midway down. An incredibly powerful beam of pure energy radiated out of
the tear blinding all those who were nearby. Mars and Uranus whom were
still on their feet despite their injuries quickly shielded their eyes
along with Jupiter lying nearby. Pyrite turned and shielded Saturn behind
his cape. Once the light died down, the only five remaining soldiers of
the Earth and Moon Kingdom quickly turned to watch in amazement as the
legend began to unfold before their eyes.
Once the light dimmed to a bare pulse, she turned to see that a strange
beautiful crystal was now floating in place of the tear. She held out her
hand and the crystal drifted gently toward her, floating barely above her
palm. She took in a sharp breath, as well as everyone else, when she saw
the actual shape of the crystal. It was a rose bud. She gazed intently at
the crystal unable to tear her eyes away from its beauty, its mysteries,
and its powers.
The crystal has enchanted her. It held her with the warm arms of the wind
that now surrounded her. Suddenly, a single beam of light raced out of the
lips of the bud and pierced her forehead directly into her soul. She could
feel this thin beam of light stir something deep within her, something that
was hidden long ago in the far depths of her mind. As the beam of light
touched these hidden memories, an explosion of images, sounds, and emotions
flooded her overwhelming her senses.
"Aaah!" she cried out in shock. Images of a beautiful silver castle
appeared in her mind, then another image of two people whom she recognized
from her dream, and then another image. One after the other in an
unrelenting flow of memories appeared before her as her life's history was
revealed to her. Tears began to course down her lovely face as she relived
all the pains of the past once again...the war...the fears...
the departure...the sorrow...the loneliness...the longing...
It was a surprise that a child of ten years could have seen so much,
could have felt so much, could have suffered so much...that she could have
endured so much.
Once the last image was shown to her, her mind suddenly went blank, then
a soft voice like the whisper of a gentle breeze was heard deep within her
mind.
"Awaken…Princess Serenity, Messiah of Light. You are now free…"
Then energy of unknown capacity spread through her soul seeping into the
very marrow of her bones. Her strong emotion of love…love for this
world…love for her friends…love for him was released in an intense beam of
pure light. This beam of light created a moon sigil with a small star
above its opening crescent to appear. The light was released from these
two symbols on her forehead directly at the rose bud. The crystal bud
began to glow with incredible powers until it was feared that the crystal
might explode, but it didn't. Instead, to everyone's amazement…to the
hopes of some and the fears of another, the petals of the bud began to
open. The crystal rose bloomed releasing an incredible power from within
its petals. The power raced out to all corners of the entire world and
also to the Moon.
The light pierced through all the bodies slumped on the ground, through
those still standing, and through the evil that threatened them.
To the ones with pure hearts, this light healed their wounded bodies and
revived their souls. To the ones with the hearts of darkness, this light
destroyed them.
====================================
Deep within an unknown darkness, they could see a bright light shining
toward them. Its bright rays reaching out to them luring them toward it.
This strange light was warm and eased their aching souls. They walked
toward it, holding out their hands to feel its warmth and its life. They
have walked for what seemed like an eternity before they finally found
themselves standing before this strange brightness.
A voice somewhere behind the light whispered to them, calling them each by
their names, "Malachite…Marcasite…Chrysolite…Venus…Neptune…Mercury…Pluto…
Azurite…Nephrite…Zoisite…Jadeite…Come. Follow my voice and I will lead
you home."
"Who are you?" Pluto's soul asked.
"I am a friend," the voice replied. "I am here to take you back…to
reunite you with your friends and loves."
"How do we know that we can trust you?" Chrysolite's soul asked
suspiciously.
"You have trusted me before," the voice answered its tone so gentle and
pure like the very light that shielded it, "please trust me now."
"Serena?" Chrysolite whispered in surprise.
"It can't be," Azurite said unbelieving. They all hesitated for a few
moments, but decided to follow this stranger. Besides, her voice sounded
so gentle and so kind. There was something in it that seemed to comfort
their hearts and gave them hope. One by one, they stepped through the
light.
==============================
Slowly, they began to open their eyes. They looked about them in
surprise. They're alive.
"But, I saw you die," Malachite whispered to Pluto. "And I felt myself
die too."
"She must have helped us," Chrysolite said as he gazed at a bright figure
sitting not very far from them with Endymion in her lap. "She has led us
back." They noticed the strange sigil on her forehead, and they gasped in
surprise when they saw the crystal rose floating above her open hand.
"The legend is true," Pluto breathed.
They watched in amazement as the soft caressing of this strange power
quickly healed all their wounds. They heard the agonizing screams of the
shadow warriors and the Dark Empress as this power destroyed them. The
dark clouds faded revealing the pale moonlight falling on them like a soft
silk curtain. The wounds created by the Dark Empress in the kingdom were
healed and the palace was restored to its full beauty. They all looked
around them in amazement seeing nothing that would have let to believe that
a terrible battle had took placed here only moments before.
Suddenly the light retreated back toward the figure, which they now noticed
to be wearing a beautiful white gown. The light flowed around Endymion
seeping into his body. It healed his wounds and began to revive him.
They heard her whisper, "Endymion…Endymion my love please come back to
me." They could see tears of pain drift down her closed eyes to fall
gently onto his face.
================================
"Darien," she cried, "Do not leave me. Please return to me. I have never
gotten a chance to tell you how much I love you. Please Darien, open your
eyes…reveal your soul to me. I love you, my dear Prince. I love you more
than anything…more than the very air I breathe. Do you hear me, my love?
Come back to me…I need you…please come back to me."
He could hear a beautiful voice calling to him from the other side of the
light. He could feel a strange warmth reach into his soul and healed his
broken heart. He could hear her whisper, "I love you." Yet, her voice
sounded so sad. "Why are you so sad my angel?" his soul whispered to her.
"Because you are not here with me," she replied. "Please, come back to me."
His heart ached at the sound in her voice. Her pleads to him tore at his
soul. He forced himself to fight against this darkness that was holding
him from his love. With every word she said, his struggles only increased.
He was determined not to lose her, again.
"I will be with you, my love," he whispered as he felt the cold hands of
death beginning to loosen its grip on him. Slowly he struggled toward the
light, toward another soul waiting for him on the other side. Finally,
he stood before it. He saw a delicate hand extended toward him through
the light. He reached for it. Upon its touch, his being was flooded with
warmth and he felt a strange soothing peace spreading through his soul.
He grabbed the hand and held on tight as the light enveloped him releasing
him from the hold of death.
========================================
It has been over a month since they had last seen Princess Serenity and her
Sailor Soldiers. Once the battle was over, they immediately departed for
their beloved home, the Moon Kingdom.
So the legend was true. The Messiah of Light did defeat the Dark Empress
and free the Moon Kingdom from her curse. Everything was restored to what
it once was, but certain things will forever be changed.
Every night, his generals would see him stand on his balcony to only gaze
absentmindedly at the bright moon above. It pained them to see him so sad
and lonely. It was unfortunate that she must depart before he awoke.
[Flashback]
Her face still close to his, she suddenly felt his warm breath on her. Her
eyes fluttered opened with surprise and joy to find him breathing,
though weakly, he was breathing nonetheless.
"My love," she whispered, "you have return to me."
She bent her head down to kiss him gently on the lips before she looked up
at the others who were watching her.
"Princess Serenity?" Venus cried, "Is that really you?"
"It is me," she replied. "It is good to be back."
"You have remembered everything?" Mercury asked hopefully. She nodded.
"I don't understand," Luna spoke up beside Jupiter. "Why didn't the King
and Queen tell us about this plan of theirs? Did they know all along that
the legend was true? That you are the savior?"
"None of us have the slightest idea of this," Venus shook her head.
"Maybe they will tell us when we get back."
"Serena," Pluto called to her gently, "We must return immediately."
Serena looked at her sadly. She did not want to leave him. She wanted to
be here when he woke up. "But--," she protested.
"I'm sorry," Mars said, "but your parents will wish to see you. They
probably miss you intensely."
A tear escaped her lovely blue eyes as she recalled her father's last
words, "When the crystal rose blooms then we will be together again."
She missed them a lot too. She looked down at her love now sleeping
quietly within her arms. She whispered to him tenderly, "I will return,
my love. I promise you. Sweet dreams until then." And she bent down to
caress his lips with hers, sealing that promise in an eternal kiss.
[end flashback]
And until now, he had dreamt of nothing but her. His heart called to her,
but she had not returned. He knit his brow with concern. Does she still
love me? He wondered. Maybe she no longer cares. Perhaps she had only
loved me because she felt lonely before, but now that she has returned to
her kingdom…maybe she loved someone else but have forgotten about him when
her memory was locked away, and now that her memories have returned so does
her love for this other person. Oh Serena, where are you? Why have you
not come back to me? He raised his hand to his lips where her last kiss
was still warm even after all this time. Have you forgotten your
promise? His eyes searched the starry sky above as if it held the answers
to his questions. The cool night air blew gently around him, playing with
the dark locks of his hair in front of his mysterious blue eyes. His
unbuttoned shirt floated around him in the gentle breeze. The soft hands
of the wind caressed his bare chest gently, easing the sorrow in his
heart.
Suddenly a small chirp from the rose hedge near him invaded his thoughts.
He turned to see a small white dove trapped deep within the crimson bush.
Somehow, it must have fallen during flight and was caught between the
thorns. He observed it closely and noted that it wasn't wounded during
the fall. He reached a hand deep into the roses carefully and gently
clasped his fingers around the animal. Slowly he removed his hand, but no
matter how careful he was he could not escape one of the thorns, which
sliced through his palm.
"Ouch!" he yelped as he quickly removed his hand with the young dove still
held protectively within his fingers.
"You should be careful around roses," a gentle voice whispered to him from
behind. He recognized the voice instantly and quickly turned to see an
angelic figure standing before him. Her golden crescent moon shining
brilliantly under the pale moonlight. The night wind blowing gently
against her caused her golden hair to float around her like the ocean
waves. Her beautiful azure gown flowed along with her graceful movements.
She quietly walked toward him clasped his hand along with the bird between
her own. With one hand still holding onto his, her other hand removed the
bird gently from his hold placing it on the railing nearby. She looked
deep into his eyes and saw the many questions reflected in them. She knew
he must have been wondering about her absence. She would have returned to
him immediately had her parents allowed, but they were overly protective of
her since after she returned from the battle. The bloody recounts of the
war by her friends did not help her situation in the least. They were not
fully at eased that the Dark Empress was gone for good despite an entire
month of peace. Her parents had never met the Earth Prince, son of their
dearest friends because the war had disrupted their lives, but now they
would be able to meet the young man that has captured their daughter's
heart and whose heart she also has. Thus, it was only until she promised
to bring him back to introduce him to them that they complied.
She lifted her other hand over his wounded one and whispered, "Now it is
my turn to heal your wound."
His eyes widen in surprise. "How?" he whispered to her.
"Watch."
He looked at their hands and saw a soft silver light slowly glowing
beneath her palm. He felt its warmth course through his hand healing his
wound.
"Now you are not the only one with the power to heal," she whispered with
a smile.
"Serena, why--," he began to ask her, but she placed a delicate finger on
his lips silencing him.
"I love you," she whispered as she leaned closer to him and pressed her
lips against his.
The multitudes of questions swarming in his mind were quickly forgotten as
he felt her warm lips sooth his heart. All would be answered later. He
wrapped his arms around her in a tight embrace that told her that he would
never let her leave him again. She smiled and leaned forward to deepen
their passionate kiss telling him that she had no intention of ever leaving
him. He no longer cared about the past or the future, only of the present,
of this single moment with her forever in his arms. This time nothing would
come between them and nothing would harm them.
So caught up in their love for each other that they felled to notice the
small dove still sitting on the railing watching them with curiosity.
Suddenly the dove took flight and flew away into the peaceful night carrying
on its beautiful white wings the love and peace of their world. Flying
silently under the pale light of the moon, the dove cooed quietly from
above weaving the love of these two people into the pale curtain of
moonlight where it shall be for all time.
=============== The End =====================
[Well, there you are the final petal of this rose! I hoped that you have
enjoyed this story. I started out writing it intending it to be only a
short fanfic, but like my previous work, it turned out to be longer than
usual. Although this fic only has six petals, each part is long.
I'm terribly sorry for making each chapter so incredibly long.
I have found it difficult to divide certain parts into separate petals.
Well, I'd like to thank everyone who has emailed me! It meant a lot to me
to receive emails from my readers. Thanks for all the wonderful
compliments! THANK YOU ALL SO VERY MUCH!!!!
If you want to read my other work it is called Serenity's Legend and it
is about Sailor Cosmos based on the Manga.
I'll see you all again in summer 2000, till then have a great year!! ^_- ]
~~Till we meet again in another dream...or another part of the Cosmos~~
Copyright (c) 1999, Cosmos.
This story is rated PG for language and stuff (Nothing serious, so don't
worry. The worse thing possible would be the word "damn" (^_^))
Oh yeah, PLEASE email me and tell me what you think of my story.
Critiques, compliments, suggestions, questions, anything would be fine.
Just FEED MY EMAIL INBOX! I think it will die of starvation soon!
Usual disclaimers: Sailor Moon and all its characters and likeliness
belongs to Naoko Takeuchi, Kodansha/Toei. English translation is made
possible by DiC.
My email address: ml_eclipse@hotmail.com
= thoughts
[ ] = author's note
Thanks to all who have emailed me! More Author's Notes at bottom ^_^
Well, enough of my babbling! Enjoy!
============================
================= Bloom of the Crystal Rose ==================
by Cosmos
============================
The Last Petal: Full Bloom
Just as she stepped through the gateway she heard a voice calling to her
frantically, "Serena! Serena, there you are. Please you must come with
me quickly!"
Serena looked at Mercury in surprise. "What's wrong, Mercury? What
happened?"
"Hurry, there is no time to talk now! Darien wants to talk to you
immediately. He said it is urgent!" she cried in distress.
Darien? She nodded and quickly followed the blue hair soldier into
the palace. She was led into a large throne room and the magnificent door
closed silently behind her.
Serena looked around the room in awe. A beautiful red velvet carpet with
intricate designs stretched from the doorway up to the platform where two
golden thrones were placed. Grand ocean-blue silk curtains cascaded down
from the tall ceiling covering large magnificent windows on either side of
the room. Beautiful handcrafted chandeliers hung low from the ceiling
illuminating this rich room. She looked around and saw his slump form on
the bottom steps of the platform leading to the two thrones. His
heart-throbbing blue eyes were gazing at her with grief. His face looked so
worn and tired. She could see that he hadn't slept much during the past
days. Her heart ached to hold him, to comfort him, and to wipe away that
sadness in his eyes.
He just sat there gazing at her as if this was the first time he has seen
her. Serena, I love you, he wanted to say…he wanted to scream to her,
but nothing came out of his mouth. He simply looked at her with longing,
with the desire to embrace her and feel her warmth against his body. He
wanted to kiss those soft pink lips of hers and to run his hands through
her long golden silk hair.
The silence was unbearable. It weighed heavily on their souls and hearts.
Each held back strong desires to comfort the other, and the tears that
threatened them. She couldn't stand this anymore. This silence was too
much for her mind. She wanted him to speak, to cry, to laugh, to yell,
anything that would break this silence, but he did neither. He only sat
there staring at her too overcome by sorrow to move.
Finally he spoke, "There is something I have to tell you."
She opened her mouth to speak but he cut her off. "Don't worry," he said
gravely, "I won't lecture you on my love for you. I know you don't want
to hear it, nor do you care for it."
What are you saying Darien? Her heart cried. Please don't say that to
me! Go on! Rant about your love for me! Try to persuade me but don't give
up on me!
"I have asked Mercury to bring you here for one reason," he continued
staring absentmindedly at the curtains floating so gently in the soft
breeze. "I have decided to return you to your world before this day ends."
"What?" she said in surprise. Although she knew of this she did not expect
it to be so soon.
"I have been told that the Dark Empress will attack the Earth Palace soon
and I don't want you to be here when she does."
"But isn't that why I'm here in the first place," she cried. "I'm suppose
to help you remember?"
He returned his gaze to her face and saw tears glistening in her sapphire
eyes. "Why are you crying?" he asked her suddenly.
Startled, she looked at him for a moment. "B-because," she stammered.
She let her gaze fall to the floor and her statement unfinished.
He looked at her intently, taking in her hair, her eyes, basically taking
in everything about her to lock in his memory because he feared that this
would be the last time he may see her. "I thought that you had wanted to
return to your world?" he whispered.
"I never said that," she said softly. "But I don't really have a choice
do I?"
"Serena--"
"Don't Darien," she stopped him gently, "I know. There is nothing you can
do, but you can at least let me stay until this war is over. Let me help
you. It is why I'm here isn't it?"
"I don't know. I don't know why the crystal brought you here anymore.
It may have been better if you were still back where you were. At least
you won't be caught in this war and perhaps get yourself killed. Serena,
I don't want to see you get hurt." He gazed into her eyes and held it.
"I don't want to see you harmed. I have promised you that I would never
let anyone harm you…and I will keep that promise."
Darien…
"Please Serena," his eyes begged her, "please do what I say and leave.
The Dark Empress is too powerful for any of us to fight her. Our defeat
is inevitable. We may not have a choice, but you do. You can escape by
leaving this world. Maybe later your life will turn out better. You might
suddenly rediscover your memories and your family. You might
even…you might even…find someone who will love you the way you deserve to
be loved."
She could tell that all this was killing him inside. It was killing her
also. "No Darien!" she cried. "I will not leave!"
He looked at her in surprise. "You were right, you have no choice in
this. You will go!"
"I will not!" she argued back. "And you cannot make me!"
"I have the power to send you wherever I want, Serena!" he snapped back at
her, angry that she would be foolish enough to want to stay and get herself
killed. "And I certainly have the power to force you into going!"
Furious, she strutted over to him and looked down at him with a face
flushed with anger. "No you don't," she said in a low voice as she stepped
closer to him. "Not when I do this…" And she clasped his face between
her hands and pressed her lips against his in a passionate kiss of
defiance. He groaned in surprise as he felt her soft lips pressed
forcefully onto his. A sudden feeling of intense energy swept through his
body as he felt her hand comb through his silky black hair. He closed his
eyes and let the warmth enclosed around him. His hands went out and
wrapped themselves around her waist, pulling her down to him.
She could feel his warm body pressed close to hers and his arms around her
waist tightened as if he was afraid she might disappear. I will never
leave you, her heart said, I can never leave you.
They both held desperately onto that passionate kiss fearing that this may
be their last. Their lungs screamed for air, but they tried to ignore it
until the hot pain in their chest forced them to separate. Breathing
heavily, he leaned his forehead against hers and looked into her azure
eyes.
"Oh, Serena," he sighed sadly. "Why did you do that? Why do you want to
stay with me only to be caught up in this war."
"Because I can't imagine ever being without you. Darien, I don't want to
lose you. If I must die, I would rather die with you."
A tear escaped his eye as he looked at her. "Serena," he cried, "I don't
want to see you suffer. I don't want to see you get hurt. W-why can't
you just go and be safe?"
"Because I can never leave you, my love."
"I wish things would be better for you, my dear Serena. I wish you had
fallen in love with someone else in your world, so that you wouldn't end
up here with me. I want to take you away from this place to escape the
fate that I am cursed with. You deserve so much more than all this pain
I've brought onto you." He buried his face in her golden hair and cried
in great sobs that shook his entire body.
"You have brought nothing but joy, Darien. I have never known what love
and happiness was until you showed them to me. You have given me more
than I can ever ask for…more than I truly deserve. You have given me
friendship and undying love. That is all I could ever want." She held
him close to her as he cried out all his pain. She could feel tears of
sorrow flood her eyes as well. Seeing him in so much anguish made her
entire being cry with him. "Things will turn out well, Darien. You'll
see."
She was not sure why she said that. Realistically, things could not have
looked more hopeless. Yet, something deep within her told her that things
would end well. She wondered why she felt this way.
She held him for a long time, long after his tears have stopped, long
after his body ceased to shake, and long after her heart ceased to cry.
They did not know how long they sat within each other's warm embrace, but
to them time was meaningless. It could be for all eternity; they did not
care as long as they have each other.
They both wished that time would stop so that they could be this way for
always. Protected by each other's love, by each other's embrace, nothing
could tear them apart; yet there was fear in their hearts. It was this
fear that destroyed the perfection of this moment. They knew that this
might be their last moments together, the last time they would see each
other. Outside they could see the dark storm that was blowing their way.
Even the moon and the very stars of heaven have retreated behind those
dark clouds now descending upon them. As if to prove their fears correct,
a mighty flash of lightning sliced across the dark sky like a saber of the
dark warriors, followed by the ominous roar of thunder signaling the
beginning of their dire battle.
Horrendous screams and evil laughter invaded their minds. They quickly
snapped their gazes toward the door when it slammed opened to reveal
Mercury leaning against the door weakly, covered in blood.
"Endymion," she cried weakly, "we're under attack…the Dark
Empress…she attacked sooner than we had expected." Too weak to stand
anymore, the young blue soldier slumped heavily onto the ground.
"Mercury!" Serena cried, running quickly toward her. "Mercury? Mercury
come on wake up!"
Mercury did not move nor did she even open her eyes. "No," Serena
whispered in grief. "Don't die, oh please don't die."
"Come on Serena!" Darien shouted, "You must leave here quickly!"
She turned her attention to him with a determined look in her bright blue
eyes. "I am staying." He looked at her tenderly knowing full well that
she would not go. He shook his head hopelessly and finally nodded.
"Here," he said, "take my sword."
"But I can't! What would you defend yourself with?"
He looked at her distressed face and gave her a quirky grin. "I have more
powers up my sleeves than you could imagine," he whispered to her.
"Take it."
She nodded and grabbed his golden sword as they both ran outside to face
their worse fears. The destruction of the palace was beyond her belief.
Once a beautiful rose garden was now a hellhole. How could one person
hold so much power of destruction? And how could one be so evil?
A roar from behind them quickly snapped her attention back to the battle.
She raised the sword up skillfully blocking a deadly attack. After
defeating several of the shadow warriors, a scream sliced into her mind.
She quickly turned her head to see Malachite and Marcasite screaming out
warnings at three people she could barely make out through the dust and
blood of the battle. Yet, from what she could see the warning came too
late as she saw three bodies sent flying through the air from an attack
by the Dark Empress.
She quickly ran over to them. The site shocked her into tears. Upon her
arrival she saw Malachite hold a blonde girl while Marcasite cradled
another girl. Through the blood and bruises she was able to make out the
faces of Sailor Venus, Sailor Pluto, and Chrysolite whom was lying nearby.
"No," she whispered in tears. Despite the roar of the battle around her,
all she could hear were the devastated words that Marcasite and Malachite
were whispering to their loves.
"Lovely Venus," she heard Malachite whispered with a voice torn deep into
his soul. "My lovely Venus, please don't leave me. How can I live without
you?"
"Dearest Pluto," she heard Marcasite barely whispered choked with tears.
"How can this happen to you? You should not suffer anymore than what you
had been through the last couple of days. Oh, my love, please forgive me.
I promised to be with you always and yet I felled to be with you when you
needed me most. I should have been there to protect you. I should have
taken that blast not you. Oh, my Time goddess…" And he let his voice
trailed off into inaudible whispers of grief.
Serena stood there in shock. Unbelievable grief coursed through her soul
like a raging fire. No, she kept saying to herself. This can't be.
They cannot…must not die. Tears streamed down her face like an
unrelenting river as sorrow's blade seared through her heart.
They were such kind people…Venus…Pluto…all of them. They don't deserve
this. No one deserves this.
Suddenly a painful moan near her feet caught her attention. "Chrysolite!"
she cried bending down to support his head in her lap. "Oh, dear
friend…hang on," she whispered to him. He opened his eyes slowly and
looked painfully at her. She could no longer see the laughter that was
once in his lovely olive-green eyes. Now, all she could see was the pain
that coursed through his body and through his heart.
"Serena," he whispered. His body shook with each painful breath he took.
"Listen to Endymion…leave…this…world. Save…yourself…while…you still can."
"How could I?" she whispered through her tears, "How could I leave you all
to suffer like this. I cannot leave you, my friend. Not when you need me
most."
He attempted a smile, but the pain prevented him from doing so. "You…are
so kind, Serena…I wish…we could…have more time…to spend together…all of
us." He took a deep painful gasp and continued, "but…I'm afraid…fate
has…not been…kind to us." She could hear his breathing becoming shallower
with each word he spoke.
"No, Chrysolite, please don't die," she cried, "don't leave us."
"I…do not…want to…Serena, but I cannot…hold on…much longer…At least…I
will…not be…alone for very long."
"What do you mean?"
"My…lovely Neptune…is waiting for me…up there." He gave her a long sad
look as his breathing slowly decreased and ceased altogether. He gave
her hand a slight squeeze as if to say farewell, then he closed his eyes
to never open them again.
"NO!" She screamed. "Chrysolite…my dear friend…no."
"Serena watch out!" she heard Malachite shouted as she felt herself being
shoved out of the way of an incoming attack from the Dark Empress. As she
rolled over onto the ground, she quickly snapped her head back only to
see both Malachite and Marcasite get killed by the attack.
No, her heart cried, NO! Make this stop! Make this end! No more
deaths…please…no more pain…
Her mind was too overcome with grief at the lost of her friends that she
did not notice the Dark Empress appear from behind her about to attack her.
Darien, however, saw this and immediately ran toward her shouting,
"SEREEEENNNNAAA!"
She heard his voice and spun around in time to see a tall woman with long
crimson hair flowing around her like the dying light of the sun. The Dark
Empress gave her a deadly smile while releasing a large number of deadly
dark ice crystals at her. There was no time for her to jump out of the
way. She stood there with horror reflecting in her lovely tear stained
eyes.
Suddenly, like slow motion photography, she saw Darien jumped at her
pushing her out of the way just as the ice crystals pierced into his
chest. His face contorted into a painful expression while a cry of
pain escaped his mouth. His limp bloody body slumped heavily upon hers
as they both fell to the ground.
"NOOOO!" she cried in a soul searing, heartbreaking sound of agony.
"Darien!" She scrambled to turn him over and placed his head gently on
her lap. Tears drifted down her face like droplets of rain, caressing his
face gently. "Darien? No, please Darien…open your eyes…wake up my love,"
she cried in a desperate tone full of sorrow.
"Serena," he barely whispered, pain and sorrow invading his deep blue eyes.
"Darien, please don't leave me," she cried. "You promised you would
always be there. Darien…"
"Serena," he whispered to her as his hand slowly raised to wipe away her
tears. "Please, don't cry. I…don't want…to see…you suffer. Oh my
love…I want…so much…to spend…the rest of my life…with you, but I fear…"
"No, Darien," she yelled at him. "Don't you dare say it! Don't you dare
think that! You will live! Do you hear me? You will live!"
"My lovely Serena," he barely whispered as his breathing began to come in
sharp painful gasps, "I want you to know…that I don't…care about the
Laws…I would have let…you stay with…me even if I know…I will be breaking
the Laws of Time. If you…were sent back…I would have followed…you to your
world…I would follow you until…the very ends of Time."
"Darien…," she whispered through her tears.
"Always remember, Serena," he whispered. His eyelids becoming heavy and
he can barely fight back the darkness that now raged just barely beneath
the surface. "I love you…I will…always love you." He can no longer fight
it. He can no longer defy the darkness now overwhelming him. He looked up
at her as his eyes slowly dim and his vision fading into darkness. He
felt himself drifting into a deep sleep, a sleep he feared he would never
awaken from. He could still feel her warmth drifting into his body. He
grasped onto that warmth in his last attempt to hang on to her. But his
grip weakened until he could no longer hold on. Slowly, he felt his body
go cold and his mind felt like it was falling, falling into some unknown
darkness waiting for him somewhere out there, a darkness that would bar
him from his angel.
"Darien?" she cried, but his eyes did not open. "Daarrriieeenn! Please
don't leave me! My love, don't you leave me! I-I-haven't even told you
that I love you." Her vision began to blur as tears escaped her cerulean
eyes. She bent her head closer to him until her lips were barely above
his and she whispered, almost breathing the very words into his soul,
"I love you." She closed her eyes as grief seared through her heart, as
her soul raged in a chaotic mixture of emotions. She knew that she said it
too late. She knew that he did not…could not hear her.
Yet, she did not know that he *did* hear her.
Suddenly, a beautiful pristine tear escaped her eye, slowly drifting down
to his face, but instead of touching his soft skin, it stopped falling
midway down. An incredibly powerful beam of pure energy radiated out of
the tear blinding all those who were nearby. Mars and Uranus whom were
still on their feet despite their injuries quickly shielded their eyes
along with Jupiter lying nearby. Pyrite turned and shielded Saturn behind
his cape. Once the light died down, the only five remaining soldiers of
the Earth and Moon Kingdom quickly turned to watch in amazement as the
legend began to unfold before their eyes.
Once the light dimmed to a bare pulse, she turned to see that a strange
beautiful crystal was now floating in place of the tear. She held out her
hand and the crystal drifted gently toward her, floating barely above her
palm. She took in a sharp breath, as well as everyone else, when she saw
the actual shape of the crystal. It was a rose bud. She gazed intently at
the crystal unable to tear her eyes away from its beauty, its mysteries,
and its powers.
The crystal has enchanted her. It held her with the warm arms of the wind
that now surrounded her. Suddenly, a single beam of light raced out of the
lips of the bud and pierced her forehead directly into her soul. She could
feel this thin beam of light stir something deep within her, something that
was hidden long ago in the far depths of her mind. As the beam of light
touched these hidden memories, an explosion of images, sounds, and emotions
flooded her overwhelming her senses.
"Aaah!" she cried out in shock. Images of a beautiful silver castle
appeared in her mind, then another image of two people whom she recognized
from her dream, and then another image. One after the other in an
unrelenting flow of memories appeared before her as her life's history was
revealed to her. Tears began to course down her lovely face as she relived
all the pains of the past once again...the war...the fears...
the departure...the sorrow...the loneliness...the longing...
It was a surprise that a child of ten years could have seen so much,
could have felt so much, could have suffered so much...that she could have
endured so much.
Once the last image was shown to her, her mind suddenly went blank, then
a soft voice like the whisper of a gentle breeze was heard deep within her
mind.
"Awaken…Princess Serenity, Messiah of Light. You are now free…"
Then energy of unknown capacity spread through her soul seeping into the
very marrow of her bones. Her strong emotion of love…love for this
world…love for her friends…love for him was released in an intense beam of
pure light. This beam of light created a moon sigil with a small star
above its opening crescent to appear. The light was released from these
two symbols on her forehead directly at the rose bud. The crystal bud
began to glow with incredible powers until it was feared that the crystal
might explode, but it didn't. Instead, to everyone's amazement…to the
hopes of some and the fears of another, the petals of the bud began to
open. The crystal rose bloomed releasing an incredible power from within
its petals. The power raced out to all corners of the entire world and
also to the Moon.
The light pierced through all the bodies slumped on the ground, through
those still standing, and through the evil that threatened them.
To the ones with pure hearts, this light healed their wounded bodies and
revived their souls. To the ones with the hearts of darkness, this light
destroyed them.
====================================
Deep within an unknown darkness, they could see a bright light shining
toward them. Its bright rays reaching out to them luring them toward it.
This strange light was warm and eased their aching souls. They walked
toward it, holding out their hands to feel its warmth and its life. They
have walked for what seemed like an eternity before they finally found
themselves standing before this strange brightness.
A voice somewhere behind the light whispered to them, calling them each by
their names, "Malachite…Marcasite…Chrysolite…Venus…Neptune…Mercury…Pluto…
Azurite…Nephrite…Zoisite…Jadeite…Come. Follow my voice and I will lead
you home."
"Who are you?" Pluto's soul asked.
"I am a friend," the voice replied. "I am here to take you back…to
reunite you with your friends and loves."
"How do we know that we can trust you?" Chrysolite's soul asked
suspiciously.
"You have trusted me before," the voice answered its tone so gentle and
pure like the very light that shielded it, "please trust me now."
"Serena?" Chrysolite whispered in surprise.
"It can't be," Azurite said unbelieving. They all hesitated for a few
moments, but decided to follow this stranger. Besides, her voice sounded
so gentle and so kind. There was something in it that seemed to comfort
their hearts and gave them hope. One by one, they stepped through the
light.
==============================
Slowly, they began to open their eyes. They looked about them in
surprise. They're alive.
"But, I saw you die," Malachite whispered to Pluto. "And I felt myself
die too."
"She must have helped us," Chrysolite said as he gazed at a bright figure
sitting not very far from them with Endymion in her lap. "She has led us
back." They noticed the strange sigil on her forehead, and they gasped in
surprise when they saw the crystal rose floating above her open hand.
"The legend is true," Pluto breathed.
They watched in amazement as the soft caressing of this strange power
quickly healed all their wounds. They heard the agonizing screams of the
shadow warriors and the Dark Empress as this power destroyed them. The
dark clouds faded revealing the pale moonlight falling on them like a soft
silk curtain. The wounds created by the Dark Empress in the kingdom were
healed and the palace was restored to its full beauty. They all looked
around them in amazement seeing nothing that would have let to believe that
a terrible battle had took placed here only moments before.
Suddenly the light retreated back toward the figure, which they now noticed
to be wearing a beautiful white gown. The light flowed around Endymion
seeping into his body. It healed his wounds and began to revive him.
They heard her whisper, "Endymion…Endymion my love please come back to
me." They could see tears of pain drift down her closed eyes to fall
gently onto his face.
================================
"Darien," she cried, "Do not leave me. Please return to me. I have never
gotten a chance to tell you how much I love you. Please Darien, open your
eyes…reveal your soul to me. I love you, my dear Prince. I love you more
than anything…more than the very air I breathe. Do you hear me, my love?
Come back to me…I need you…please come back to me."
He could hear a beautiful voice calling to him from the other side of the
light. He could feel a strange warmth reach into his soul and healed his
broken heart. He could hear her whisper, "I love you." Yet, her voice
sounded so sad. "Why are you so sad my angel?" his soul whispered to her.
"Because you are not here with me," she replied. "Please, come back to me."
His heart ached at the sound in her voice. Her pleads to him tore at his
soul. He forced himself to fight against this darkness that was holding
him from his love. With every word she said, his struggles only increased.
He was determined not to lose her, again.
"I will be with you, my love," he whispered as he felt the cold hands of
death beginning to loosen its grip on him. Slowly he struggled toward the
light, toward another soul waiting for him on the other side. Finally,
he stood before it. He saw a delicate hand extended toward him through
the light. He reached for it. Upon its touch, his being was flooded with
warmth and he felt a strange soothing peace spreading through his soul.
He grabbed the hand and held on tight as the light enveloped him releasing
him from the hold of death.
========================================
It has been over a month since they had last seen Princess Serenity and her
Sailor Soldiers. Once the battle was over, they immediately departed for
their beloved home, the Moon Kingdom.
So the legend was true. The Messiah of Light did defeat the Dark Empress
and free the Moon Kingdom from her curse. Everything was restored to what
it once was, but certain things will forever be changed.
Every night, his generals would see him stand on his balcony to only gaze
absentmindedly at the bright moon above. It pained them to see him so sad
and lonely. It was unfortunate that she must depart before he awoke.
[Flashback]
Her face still close to his, she suddenly felt his warm breath on her. Her
eyes fluttered opened with surprise and joy to find him breathing,
though weakly, he was breathing nonetheless.
"My love," she whispered, "you have return to me."
She bent her head down to kiss him gently on the lips before she looked up
at the others who were watching her.
"Princess Serenity?" Venus cried, "Is that really you?"
"It is me," she replied. "It is good to be back."
"You have remembered everything?" Mercury asked hopefully. She nodded.
"I don't understand," Luna spoke up beside Jupiter. "Why didn't the King
and Queen tell us about this plan of theirs? Did they know all along that
the legend was true? That you are the savior?"
"None of us have the slightest idea of this," Venus shook her head.
"Maybe they will tell us when we get back."
"Serena," Pluto called to her gently, "We must return immediately."
Serena looked at her sadly. She did not want to leave him. She wanted to
be here when he woke up. "But--," she protested.
"I'm sorry," Mars said, "but your parents will wish to see you. They
probably miss you intensely."
A tear escaped her lovely blue eyes as she recalled her father's last
words, "When the crystal rose blooms then we will be together again."
She missed them a lot too. She looked down at her love now sleeping
quietly within her arms. She whispered to him tenderly, "I will return,
my love. I promise you. Sweet dreams until then." And she bent down to
caress his lips with hers, sealing that promise in an eternal kiss.
[end flashback]
And until now, he had dreamt of nothing but her. His heart called to her,
but she had not returned. He knit his brow with concern. Does she still
love me? He wondered. Maybe she no longer cares. Perhaps she had only
loved me because she felt lonely before, but now that she has returned to
her kingdom…maybe she loved someone else but have forgotten about him when
her memory was locked away, and now that her memories have returned so does
her love for this other person. Oh Serena, where are you? Why have you
not come back to me? He raised his hand to his lips where her last kiss
was still warm even after all this time. Have you forgotten your
promise? His eyes searched the starry sky above as if it held the answers
to his questions. The cool night air blew gently around him, playing with
the dark locks of his hair in front of his mysterious blue eyes. His
unbuttoned shirt floated around him in the gentle breeze. The soft hands
of the wind caressed his bare chest gently, easing the sorrow in his
heart.
Suddenly a small chirp from the rose hedge near him invaded his thoughts.
He turned to see a small white dove trapped deep within the crimson bush.
Somehow, it must have fallen during flight and was caught between the
thorns. He observed it closely and noted that it wasn't wounded during
the fall. He reached a hand deep into the roses carefully and gently
clasped his fingers around the animal. Slowly he removed his hand, but no
matter how careful he was he could not escape one of the thorns, which
sliced through his palm.
"Ouch!" he yelped as he quickly removed his hand with the young dove still
held protectively within his fingers.
"You should be careful around roses," a gentle voice whispered to him from
behind. He recognized the voice instantly and quickly turned to see an
angelic figure standing before him. Her golden crescent moon shining
brilliantly under the pale moonlight. The night wind blowing gently
against her caused her golden hair to float around her like the ocean
waves. Her beautiful azure gown flowed along with her graceful movements.
She quietly walked toward him clasped his hand along with the bird between
her own. With one hand still holding onto his, her other hand removed the
bird gently from his hold placing it on the railing nearby. She looked
deep into his eyes and saw the many questions reflected in them. She knew
he must have been wondering about her absence. She would have returned to
him immediately had her parents allowed, but they were overly protective of
her since after she returned from the battle. The bloody recounts of the
war by her friends did not help her situation in the least. They were not
fully at eased that the Dark Empress was gone for good despite an entire
month of peace. Her parents had never met the Earth Prince, son of their
dearest friends because the war had disrupted their lives, but now they
would be able to meet the young man that has captured their daughter's
heart and whose heart she also has. Thus, it was only until she promised
to bring him back to introduce him to them that they complied.
She lifted her other hand over his wounded one and whispered, "Now it is
my turn to heal your wound."
His eyes widen in surprise. "How?" he whispered to her.
"Watch."
He looked at their hands and saw a soft silver light slowly glowing
beneath her palm. He felt its warmth course through his hand healing his
wound.
"Now you are not the only one with the power to heal," she whispered with
a smile.
"Serena, why--," he began to ask her, but she placed a delicate finger on
his lips silencing him.
"I love you," she whispered as she leaned closer to him and pressed her
lips against his.
The multitudes of questions swarming in his mind were quickly forgotten as
he felt her warm lips sooth his heart. All would be answered later. He
wrapped his arms around her in a tight embrace that told her that he would
never let her leave him again. She smiled and leaned forward to deepen
their passionate kiss telling him that she had no intention of ever leaving
him. He no longer cared about the past or the future, only of the present,
of this single moment with her forever in his arms. This time nothing would
come between them and nothing would harm them.
So caught up in their love for each other that they felled to notice the
small dove still sitting on the railing watching them with curiosity.
Suddenly the dove took flight and flew away into the peaceful night carrying
on its beautiful white wings the love and peace of their world. Flying
silently under the pale light of the moon, the dove cooed quietly from
above weaving the love of these two people into the pale curtain of
moonlight where it shall be for all time.
=============== The End =====================
[Well, there you are the final petal of this rose! I hoped that you have
enjoyed this story. I started out writing it intending it to be only a
short fanfic, but like my previous work, it turned out to be longer than
usual. Although this fic only has six petals, each part is long.
I'm terribly sorry for making each chapter so incredibly long.
I have found it difficult to divide certain parts into separate petals.
Well, I'd like to thank everyone who has emailed me! It meant a lot to me
to receive emails from my readers. Thanks for all the wonderful
compliments! THANK YOU ALL SO VERY MUCH!!!!
If you want to read my other work it is called Serenity's Legend and it
is about Sailor Cosmos based on the Manga.
I'll see you all again in summer 2000, till then have a great year!! ^_- ]
~~Till we meet again in another dream...or another part of the Cosmos~~
Copyright (c) 1999, Cosmos.