Setsuna glanced around the room at the
other senshi and rolled her eyes. How could they indulge in this disaster that
Chibi Usa had brought upon herself? And not only were they fixing her problems
like one would do for a child, but they
were calling her Ebony.
She scowled. This was not the Chibi Usa she had known—the
sweet, kind, loving child, woman, if you will, who would sacrifice all owned to
her to make her friend Pluto laugh. Now that sweet morsel of innocence was prey
to a drunkard who claims to have been reformed, lending her his power to go
against Neo Queen Serenity—her own mother—for
what? To free the man? Why would she randomly decide to help this man who had
attacked her and her people many times to get to her mother so that he could
get free? Couldn't she see through his trap? Diamond claimed he cared for her,
but this man was a munipulator, as shown to Serenity countless amounts of times
for his desire for her. Now why was he using Chibi Usa? It seemed that all he
wanted was to be free; to break from his banishment. And if he was using her to become free, would he
dump her right after and head straight for better game? Could the queen be the
real reason he wished to be on the earth once more?
"Hm." She huffed. She hadn't missed the
looks he had given her in the past, nor the feirce crippling desire in which
inhabited his body every time she grew near. He could be dangerous if not
somehow held under control. A danger to Chibi Usa… That is, if he hasn't harmed
her already…
Was it brainwashing? No one would just
up and change their mind so quickly about anything, let alone their name, thei
r lifestyle, their piece of mind in the least. It may have been brainwashing,
though anything else was possible. Whatever black magic he had used on the Moon
Kingdom in the 30th century was quite strong and definitely enough
to convince people to go against their will.
Setsuna sighed and shook her head. Everyone
seemed to be convinced Diamond was good and that they should just accept who
she was now. But none of them ever spent as much time with Chibi Usa as she
had. She knew her secret soul, her hopes and dreams, and desires. For over 800
years they had been best friends, the little one always bringing a smile to her
face, whether she made cute things for her in class, or sang songs, or just sat
with Setsuna, keeping her company. Those times were Setsuna's favorite. They
could sit for hours together, saying nothing, and it would be the best of all;
hearts touching each other without communication. Sometimes Chibi Usa would hum
a wordless rhapsody that toushed her heart, and their friendship was so deep,
that there were times Setsuna was glad Chibi Usa had no other best friends, as
selfish as it was, because then she'd have to share her with others, and the
little pink haired sweetie would start coming around less and less, and just
the thought was enough to break her heart.
Why couldn't her friend see that what
she was getting herself into was a trap? It had to be… There was nothing else
it could be.
Biting her lip, she took a deep breath,
and let it out slowly.
She knew she had to get through to
Chibi Usa, before it was too late and she was hurt too badly for friendship to
heal—another thing Setsuna loved was the fact that when Small Lady was feeling
lonely, or sad, or helpless, being with her always seemed to cheer her, no
matter what the problem was. She didn't want to lose that ability, for she knew
if she did, it would be lost forever.
CLANK CLANK!!!
Her head jerked around to see her Time
Key, which had been resting on the doorway had fallen over. She sighed. If only
the damn thing weren't so heavy.
Walking over to it, she noticed a small
darkened circle below her as she bent down toward the staff. It looked almost
like a shadow. Acutely alarmed, she glanced up.
She didn't have time to scream.
Diamond lay across his silken bed, with
Ebony resting upon his stomach. Running his fingers through her softened hair,
he gazed into her scarlet eyes… Like fire, they held something inside,
something that burned him as he stared into them.
"Ebony, you're too beautiful…" He slid
his hands along her darkened skin, the mixture of her facial colors again
reminding him of an exotic flower… His flower… To hold and to touch, to love
and care for… For better or for worse…
He swallowed hard as the sudden
realization that he was thinking of marriage vows just by glancing to her face
hit. Naturally, his gaze fell upon her ripe breasts, and her stomach, her
entire body. It made him crave her once more.
Almost as if she felt his eyes on her,
her eyes sweeped up until she met his glance.
"Diamond, are you hungry again?" She
rolled over, laughing as he blushed, then pulled her closer to him.
"When am I not?" He growled a little
growl of pleasure as he came near her ravenously.
Placing a finger on his lips she
smiled.
"You should learn to control your
hunger, young man."
With that, he sat down beside her,
leaned over and grinned.
"And that's it?" She asked, befuddled.
"And that's it." His smile grew broader
with genuinity.
"So, your desire isn't so strong that
you couldn't control your body?" She looked to him, and began running her hand
up his leg.
"I-It's not that… Believe me…" He swallowed
hard, reaching for her hand to stop it. "Sometimes my body just goes into
tremors thinking of you… My mind can't focus, and my whole being feels like
it's burning, aching for you… You make me want to never stop making love to
you… to never stop kissing you, those beautiful lips…"
"Alright—you're a man—all that's
forgivable." She grinned and sat back, looking at him.
"But sometimes, I would give all that
up, your body, and your beautiful lips… just to be with you… your soul alone is
healing me, every day, it's healing me… We've only been together for a few
days, but in that time I have seen myself truer than ever before… And you and
so wonderful, so full of surprises and love, so abundant and lovable, cute and
sexy… everything I could ever ask for, and yet ten times more. Ah, how can I
explain to you, sweet Ebony, how much you have changed me—how much you inspire
me, and help me, and just make me happier, with your presence alone? There are
no words, no easy words, to tell you…"
A long silence fell between the two.
"Then tell me in hard words…" She
whispered boldly, desperately wanting to hear more.
Diamond's face softened, and he smiled
gently.
"Don't you know it by now, Ebony?
Doesn't it show in every move I make, every word I speak, all I do—Isn't it more
obvious than anything in the world? Ebony, I lo-"
CLANK CLANK!!!
"Damn it all!!! He cursed and stood up
abruptly, breaking away from Ebony's hand in which he had gradually taken hold
of.
"Oh!" She gasped at the sudden
departure of his warm hands, most definitely shown by warm words. She knew what
Diamond had to say, she knew it with all her heart… She just wanted to hear it
from him—something his brother,
someone who had known him all his life, said he would never do.
Diamond stood at the side of the bed,
choppily putting on his pants, angered by the fact that every time he got up
the guts to tell her he loved her, something always distracted him from it, or
kept him from revealing, as if someone was purposely trying to keep it from
her. He would have continued telling her, but her reaction would make him want
to stay… He knew her reaction would
make him never want to leave her…
Reluctantly, Ebony's body glided into a
sitting position, eyes still unable to leave Diamond. Reaching for her dress,
she felt so unfullfilled, just knowing
he was going to say it, and knowing
that once he said it, she would never leave him. A coal burnt in her belly like
a lover denied of fervor, feeling wholly amorous yet and helpless to the fact
that she was, indeed, helpless.
"Diamond…?" She crooned, reaching for
his hand.
"Y-Yes, Ebony?" His anger melted away,
and was replaced by ultimate sadness brought on by his incapablility, or, bad
timing, perhaps, to tell her how deeply he felt for her.
She smiled and looked down, almost
sheepishly.
"Yes?" He asked again.
"Nothing." She glanced back to him
again innocently.
His face crinkled tenderly into a
smile.
Her dress floated above her head and
slid graciously over her body to fit her slim figure once more. Diamond's eyes
watched intently as the silk carressed her body on the way down. He yearned to
touch that skin once more, but he knew they had to see what the noise was.
As they walked hand-in-hand out of the
room, he suddenly pulled her to him and kissed her.
"Don't think I'm finished." He
whispered, then grinned as they walked out of the room.
Diamond peeked his head inside the room
of the Black Crystal, where all the senshi remained. None of them paid much
attention to anything but their research, so he motioned for Ebony to step
inside. She nodded, and slid in casually. Diamond followed her silently.
Glancing aorund, she saw all of the
senshi hard at work, all trying to study the crystal with great care… for her…
For the first time, Ebony realized that the scouts were working that hard to
protect her. Not to save the Queen,
not to defend Crystal Tokyo, but to protect her.
They were intent on the crystal so that they could find ways to destroy it and
not immolate her in the process. And why? They had no reason to be involved with
the crystal, or Nemesis. It was all for her.
Tears came to her eyes as she realized
these were her true friends… And the
Queen was, in fact, there for her
when she needed it. All the things she had seen against them was in the
blindness of her, of her… Feeling foolish, she didn't even know why she had
felt like she did. None of them had ever done
anything to her… Usagi was a teenager, so of course she would be moody. And
then she had some weird kid show up to fake-out her parents, sleep in her bed,
fall in love with her lover… Ebony blushed. She would have kicked the kid right
in the rear-end had she been Usagi. So not only was she mean to Usagi and all
those who loved her and were there for her, but she was mean to her best
friend… who had been her best friend
for hundreds of years, always listening, always caring… and she had been mean
to her…
Bowing her head like a child who had
just been scolded, she turned to find Setsuna so she could apologize and know
that they would be friends again, for all eternity.
To her dimay, Setsuna was nowhere.
Trying not to draw much attention to
herself, yet wanting people to hear, she cleared her throat and took a step
further into the room.
"Where's Setsuna?" She questioned
non-chalantly.
Rei glanced up with a Look on her face,
then looked around the room for Pluto.
"I don't know. She was here a few
minutes ago." Her face grew tense with concern.
"Has anyone here seen Pluto?" Makoto
asked.
Everyone flitted their heads about,
looking at each other for an answer, and for her.
"Maybe she went to go explore more of
the palace." Ami suggested, turning to the rest of the senshi.
"Or went to look for you two." Mina
smiled behind her hand.
Ebony's eyes filled with tears as she
reached down to the marble floor, and rose silently; slowly.
"She didn't go anywhere… not of her
will, anyway." She uttered.
"Now, Ebony, you can't jump to
conclusions. You don't know if she—" Neo Queen Serenity took on a motherly
tone.
"She'd never leave without her Time
Key, Serenity! Open your eyes!" Her voice wavered in sudden fear, holding the
time key lovingly in her hands. Closing her eyes, she bowed her head again,
then looked back at Serenity, tears more evident than before.
"I'm sorry… I didn't mean to snap."
Ebony whispered.
Serenity nodded, then walked to the
door.
"Mercury—can you get a reading on her?"
She asked grandly.
Ami typed quickly on her tiny computer,
her face brightening.
"Yes! We can follow this reading to
find her!"
The scouts all rushed to the door,
followed by Ebony and Diamond. Ami led, beginning to run. The sound of their
boots and Ebony's and Serenity's heels quickened at the pace of their bodies.
Diamond still held his dear's hand as they ran, and they almost crashed into a
wall as they turned a sharp corner.
Suddenly, Ami stopped, leaving them all
to slide into each other like dominos.
"What is it Am—" Mina gasped, ceasing
mid-sentence as her eyes afixiated on what she saw.
The whole side of the building was
taken out, leaving a huge mass of dark, swirling energy in it's place, with
Setsuna in the middle of the jumble.
"Setsuna!!!" Ebony screamed, Diamond
holding her back. A pained looked ceared across Pluto's face as energy surged
into her body, which tried to deny the dark karma.
"Welcome, Sailor Scouts, to my true
power." A booming voice roared.
"Who-who are you?!?" The Queen called
back, standing in front to protect the others.
"I am Nemesis." It replied,
overpoweringly.
Diamond clutched Ebony to him, frantic
to keep her from racing wildly to her friend, and straight into her death—or
Wiseman's hold once more.
"Diamond, let me go! I have to save
Setsuna!!!" She thrashed about, trying to become free.
"No, Ebony, I won't." He said calmly.
"I said, let me go!" Ebony yanked her
arm to herself, but Diamond held it fast, and it just made Ebony pull herself
into him.
Wrapping an arm around her writhing
body, her rubbed her back.
"Ebony, I'm not going to let you go,
and get yourself killed. If we're going to save Setsuna, we have to do it
together. Not alone." His voice remained soothing and low. Soon the efforts to
excape diminished and Ebony slowly curled around Diamond in an apologetic
embrace. Her body trembled, and Diamond soon noticed she was crying.
Lifting her face to his, he wiped the
tears from her cheek.
"Why are you crying?" He asked softly,
not paying attention to the Senshi, who held their little sailor speeches with
Nemesis.
Her head turned, and she resembled a
child.
"It's my fault Setsuna's in pain… in
trouble… I've been so naïve, naïve to everything, to everyone…"
Holding her gently once more, Diamond
smiled. He then pulled her away from his body, grasping her shoulders firmly,
and looked deep into her eyes.
"This is no time to feel sorry for
yourself, Ebony. Your friend needs you, and being hers, you need to be there for
her." Her said tenderly, yet sternly.
She bowed her head, and rose to her
feet.
When she lifted her head, Diamond was
surprised yet again. She smiled a great big grin anf threw herself onto him in
thanks.
"Where would I be without you?" She
whispered gratefully.
"Probably in a whole hell of a lot less
trouble." He grinned, then turned to Nemesis's display. A faint figure was made
out of the black energy—Wiseman's former figure.
"You can't be Nemesis—that's the
planet!!!" Mina shouted dumbly.
"You foolish Sailors—Wiseman was only
my weak human identity!!! For years I have been feeding and growing off the
positive energy of Prince Diamond and the general energy of Sapphire and
Emerald, Rubeus, the Fours Sisters of Deception, and lately, I have gotten enough
of an energy boost from dear Ebony," Nemesis's actions gestured to Ebony as
Diamond stood in front of her protectively, "that I was able to discard of my
human body and become my true form."
"What about having so much power could
possibly be that appealing?" Mars stepped forward, speaking boldly.
"What about it isn't? I have enough
power to make the world bow down to me, and soon, the entire Universe shall be
in the palm of my hand—all my slaves for eternity. There shall be no boundries
for where I hold my power, and no limit to ultimate destruction." He bellowed,
letting out a sharp crackle of laughter.
"You're sick!" Makoto yelled.
"I'm superior!" He snapped back.
"You'll never be superior, Nemesis! We
fight with love!" Venus shouted, then nudged Makoto to continue.
"Yeah, there's nothing in comparison to
friendship and love!!!"
"With it, we can overcome all evil whom
use hatred to destroy all that is good." Mercury let out.
"And vanquish those power-tripped fools
who believe evil will lead them." Mars shouted as well.
"Enough of your pep-speeches—if you're
going to get rid of the evil, come and get it." Nemesis let out an air of utter
conceit.
The senshi got into their attack
stances when Nemesis spoke again.
"Just keep in mind that until you find
a way to free your friend here, all your attempts to defeat me will go against
her, instead. I'm immune until this one dies. And then, I'll just retreive one
of you. Luckily, this one should hold out for a while."
"You're bluffing!" Serenity accused.
"You think so? Try me." He sneered.