This is based on a story called 'Sign of the Hawk.'
Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon. But I wish I did! I also don't own
Sign of the Hawk. I don't even want to own that, although it is
reasonably well-written.
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It happened in France, during the revolution. Citizens, crazed by their
suffering and anger, rebelled against the French aristocrats. It was a
sad and troubled time, and many innocent men lost their lives.
Our story takes place by the barricade surrounding the walls of Paris.
A long, straggling queue of vehicles, coaches, and pedestrians had
lined up to get inside. Only a few, though, were worth any attention.
One of these was a young girl, her cloak wrapped tightly around her.
As she was called up to the barrier, she shivered. The movement was so
slight not one person noticed it, or so she thought. Swallowing her
fear, she walked forward with her head held high. This, however, earned
her a look of deep suspicion from the guard.
She handed him her papers, which he examined with great care. Finally,
he nodded, and she greatfully slipped past.
"I thank you, m'sieur." she said quietly. At this the man became more
suspicious than ever. He halted Serena, for such was her name, and
brought her 'round to face him, his hand gripping her wrist painfully.
"In these times, *citizen*," and he laid careful stress on the word.
"there *are* no m'sieurs, nor fine mesdames, for that matter. We are
all citizens, and equals, as you should know."
Realising her mistake, Serena hastily tried to cover it up. "Forgive
me, good patriot. In the small village from which I came, the new
order of things is still new to us."
Although he was still suspicious, he had no evidence against her, and
so the guard reluctantly released Serena's wrist. Without looking back,
she ran, away from the frightening glares and unfriendly faces, away
from the angry guard, away from the only home she had ever known.
She could not run forever, however, and soon she found herself panting
for breath. Not knowing which direction to take, she decided to ask a
passing salesman for help.
"Excuse me, citizen." this time she was careful to use the right term.
Having caught his attention, she continued. "I was hoping you could
direct me to the house of a friend of mine. I do not think it is very
far from this very place."
The man smiled kindly at her. "If it is, I'll be able to help you for
sure. I've lived around here all my life." his tone was not that of a
common peasant. "What might be this man's name?"
Looking around, Serena decided to take a chance. "He is known," she
said with a simple pride, "He is known as Sir Andrew."
At this, the salesman looked around in fear, but sighed in relief when
he saw that no-one had heard. Inwardly, sorrow filled his heart, for
rumors were that by the end of the day, this great man would no longer
live. He was an aristocrat, and the public would not suffer him to
stay.
"I'm sorry, lass. I daren't help you. I will point out the direction,
though." and he held up his arm. Pointing, he said: "It's over there,
behind the church." Then, with a flick of the whip in his other hand,
his horse shot off, leaving Serena fealing even more frightened then
before. There was something strange in his manner . . .
But there was no time to think of such things now. Quickly, she walked
towards the place where she would surely find her kind guardian.
When she did arrive, a horrible sight met her wide blue eyes. There
was the estate, just the same as it had been all those long years ago,
apart from one fact. Flames licked one side, slowly spreading across
to the other. It was enough to make you weep. Indeed, hot tears of
anger and regret poured down Serena's cheeks. Unfortunately for her,
they were noticed.
"Why cry, good citizen?" one middle-aged woman, wearing an old brown
dress with many tears, cried out to her. "All loyal patriots should
rejoice, for today an accoursed aristocrat has met his downfall. Come,
be merry! Dance, sing, play!" and she jerked the frightened girl
towards her.
In doing so, Serena's cloak fell from her shoulders, revealing a rich
blue gown with gold trimmings. Suspicious murmors arose from the crowd.
The same woman who had called out to her now spoke again. "Now, how did
*you* come come across such finery? Unless you're an aristocrat . . ."
and she trailed off. The crowd, however had heard enough. Angry jeers
replaced the friendly shouts, and many of them wanted her dead.
"I say, kill her!" one said, and was met by nods of agreement. Feeling
he was well supported, the man continued. "Death to the aristocrats!"
similar cries were echoed all 'round. This however was not enough.
"I'll take her down to the gaol. Then, let her rot, for all I care!"
when his idea was replied to by cheers, he stepped forward and grabbed
her. He was about to lead her off, when . . .
"Wait!" a command rang out, clear and cold. "I have a much surer way
of dealing with her."
Serena turned to look at him. Her face lit up in recognition. This was
the same man who had looked at her so queerly in the queue! He was very
frightening close up, and she was sure he was going to do something
awful. She was surprised to hear murmors of respect ripple through the
surrounding patriots.
"Red Hawk! It's Red Hawk!" one excited youngster exclaimed. Another,
older man muttered to his wife:
"He's the one who lead the attack at St James' Square!"
This so-called 'Red Hawk' must have had very good hearing, however, for
though the man spoke in a very low tone, he caught the statement, and
replied to it.
"Aye," he said, "that was a job well done. Many of those accursed
aristocrats met their maker then." and he laughed. Serena shivered. It
was not a pleasant sound.
"What are you going to do with her?" asked a woman dressed in black. At
this, Red Hawk smiled even more. Although she was, by this time,
convinced he was crazy, Serena couldn't help reflecting on how
handsome he was. But all these thoughts were banished from her mind as
she heard his reply.
"I'm just taking her to meet a friend of mine." he said, then his
voice turned harsh. "La Guillotine!" at this, laughter broke out among
the crowd. His expression then changed to one of seriousness. "I'll
escort her. You," and he gestured at the people forming a circle around
them. "You stay here. In all the excitement you have, no doubt,
forgotten the reason you are here. Our good friend Sir Andrew has
passed away, leaving all his valuable belongings with no-one to take
care of them. They had better be snatched up quickly, or else they'll
burn." he turned away, leaving the peasants eager to follow his advice.
Scooping Serena up in his arms, he strode away.
As soon as they were out of sight, however, he gently put her down, his
cold eyes softening to an expressive midnight blue. When he spoke, it
was in fluent French, but Serena could just make out a hint of an
English accent.
"Forgive me, madmoiselle." he said, "I am sorry to have had to take
such drastic actions, but I simply had to rescue you from that crowd."
Regaining her senses quickly, Serena spoke. "No apollogies are needed,
m'sieur, and if they were, it should be I saying so to you, causing
such trouble, as I did."
At this, he smiled at her, in a way which made her think her heart
would surely melt. Trying to make maintain a calm exterior, she smiled
sweetly back at him, waiting for his reply. It came after a moment of
silence, for it took him quite a while to recover after the sight of
her grin. It made her look vulnerable, in need of protection. It made
her look beautiful.
"Please feel no such obligation. I was glad to be of assistance.
Perhaps, some other time, you can tell me how you got to be in such a
mess in the first place? Right now, though, we have many other things
to attend to. We must hurry." Abruptly, he strode away, so quickly she
had to run to keep up. Truly, she couldn't make him out at all. One
minute he was sweet, caring. The next, he was practically running
away from her! Shaking her head, she put all her concentration into
catching up. She failed miserably. Seeing her discomfort, he smiled,
and slowed down, much to her relief.
After a few minutes, they arrived at their destination. It was a small
shop, over which hung a sign. It read: 'Mother Faruhata's Convenient
Store.' Ignoring her questioning glances, Red Hawk strode towards the
door. Looking around quickly, he made certain they were alone before
knocking three times.
Serena heard footsteps coming towards them, accompanied by a low
grumbling. The door was flung open, revealing an elderly-looking woman
dressed almost entirely in grey. She gazed up at Red Hawk in surprise,
then her hard features softened. "Why, it's you, sir! I wasn't
expecting visitors at such a late hour! And I see you have brought a
friend."
Her kind eyes looked over at Serena in sympathy, though the girl knew
not why. Mother Faruhata then drew the young man away, and, speaking in
such a low voice he had to srain to hear, said: "Is she the one . . ."
Trailing off, she looked up at him, her eyes expressing the question
better than words ever could. Sadly, he nodded.
Greatly perplexed at this silent conversation, Serena cleared her
throat expectantly. They quickly turned their attention towards her,
and she smiled shyly. The sight was enough to take anyone's breath
away; she looked like an angel. As her rescuer seemed to notice . . .
Seeing the amused look on the late Sir Andrew's mother, she turned to
Red Hawk, her eyes pleading for understanding. He, however, could do
nothing but stare, a pass-time she, it seemed, would like to copy,
though she was blushing terribly.
Widow Faruhata sighed blissfully. She always had loved a good romance.
Although . . . It wasn't very pleasant being ignored, and the two
youngsters seemed oblivious to anyone but themselves. They were lost in
their own little world, a place where only they existed. Like a pair
of magnets, each seemed drawn towards the other.
Just as their lips were about to meet, a cough abruptly brought them
out of their trance. They turned to see a slightly annoyed old woman
tapping her foot on the cold stone floor. Blushing one again, Serena
looked away, very much relieved when her rescuer turned towards his
friend. She was, however, slightly annoyed when they once again began
their quiet conversation. Quickly crushing the urge to turn and listen,
she slipped to the ground. Soon, the trauma of her recent experiences,
as well as common exhaustion, caught up with her, and slowly her eyes
began to close. Just a few seconds later, Serena was asleep.
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So, there's chapter one! What did ya think? Please let me know; I need
all the suggestions, comments, even flames I can get. And PLEASE email!
I get so bored!