Chapter 4
"Yes," Serenity responded, "the question of the security of the kingdom has become important lately. Even though we are not in any immediate danger, it is always good to be prepared just in case."
"Who is to be in charge of the protection of the kingdom?" Iris Bruit asked. She was a reporter who had somehow made her way into the crowd. She had short, violet hair just long enough to be curl. Her eyes were red and always seemed to be curious, ready to strike at any sign of a good story. Not to say that she was not good at her story, she was one of the best, especially for her young age of twenty-two. She could defiantly be a shark ready to strike at any given moment.
"Well, I always hoped I would be," Endymion responded, walking up. He took Serenity's arm as he stood by her side.
"It could not get much better than you, but is it not a job too big just for yourself?" Iris asked, ready to fire another.
"I would have to say it is a little too big for someone as myself," Endymion answered. "There will always be issues that will need my help that will not require brute force. It will be hard ruling the kingdom while trying to make sure an army is ready to go at any time. Lately, there have been many issues, enough to keep both Serenity and I busy. The extra load would be a bit pressing."
"Have you been thinking of anyone who would be a huge help to you in this area?" Iris interrogated.
"Not for the moment, no," Serenity answered. "We have not had much time."
"I have a suggestion, if you do not mind that is," Wisdom said, as he walked up.
"Who, may I ask, are you?" Iris questioned.
"I am Wisdom Lore," Wisdom introduced himself.
"You mean multitasking Wisdom Lore," Iris replied. "The one who is rich and powerful and does not seem to really do a damn thing. How did you become what you are today?" You could almost literally see the venom dripping from her mouth.
"That is a story for another day, for now, I have a suggestion," Wisdom answered.
"Please, it never hurts to get the opinion of someone so renowned," Serenity replied. "You must have some wisdom, I might say."
"Some wisdom," Endymion said, under his breath.
"Why don't you ask Princess Neo if she would be interested in the job?" Wisdom queried. "After all, she did save us all before. It would only be proper for her to work on the protection of the kingdom."
"Interesting reason," Endymion said.
"I guess that does make sense," Serenity replied, her voice dripping with disdain. Endymion and Wisdom caught on to it, while Iris only understood enough to cause suspicion. "Thank you for the suggestion."
"You are welcome, Neo Queen Serenity," Wisdom returned.
"What about your court?" Iris asked.
"They are all still very loyal fighters even though they have their own kingdoms to attend to," Serenity replied.
"It seems with King Endymion, Princess Neo, and your court you've already gotten a rather impressive fighting force already."
* "Look, there is another Moon Face," someone said, from behind India.
India turned around to see Amara and Michelle, along with Hotaru and Trista. "Hi," India greeted. "How are you all?"
They all looked beautiful. Hotaru was the most stunning. She had matured over the years, growing a figure. Her face thinned out. Her hair had grown out to a wonderful, flowing length that shone. She looked almost a mirror image of Mistress Nine, only with goodness replacing the evil.
"We are okay," Trista answered.
"We thought we would stop by to catch the festivities, and to see how you were," Hotaru answered.
"We have the time," Trista commented. "There really is not much activity in the outer planets to take care of."
"Besides, we never really got to talk before," Michelle said.
"You might have saved us, but we still have no reason to trust you," Amara informed her.
"I am sure I have not given you a reason to think otherwise either," India replied.
Amara looked towards Endymion. "Maybe, maybe not," Amara responded.
"Behave yourself," Michelle told Amara. "I'm sure we will get to know you better. Where is everyone?"
"I was actually just walking back over to them," India replied. "You can come with me."
India took the lead from the dance floor towards the Scouts. She could feel Amara's suspicious eyes at her back. It was almost as bad as the reporters.
"Guess whom I found," India said.
The Scouts turned around to see their friends.
"Hello," Amy greeted. "How have you been?"
"We have been just fine," Amara answered.
"It is nice to see you all again," Lita replied.
"You too," Michelle said.
"It seems you come with good intentions," Rei said.
"Why else would we come?" Trista asked.
"I do not know, maybe the world is about to end or something," Rei responded.
"We are not some walking sign of destruction," Trista said, offended.
"Calm down, I am not implying anything by it," Rei laughed.
Mina stood looking angrily at Trista and Hotaru. "There is something wrong here!" Mina cried.
Hotaru and Trista backed away, looking a bit frightened. Mina just stepped toward them, with them taking a step back each time.
"Stop that!" Mina nearly yelled. She pointed a finger right at them. "Why have you two not got any boyfriends?"
"Work maybe," Hotaru tried.
"That is no excuse. You two should still have someone looking after you. You should not spend all your time alone."
Everyone just looked on amazed. It was not every day that Mina went on one of her Venus trips. Well, maybe it was, but not to this extent.
"Well, I am sorry if we think not having a betroth is as important as keeping the evil forces from getting through the Milky Way," Trista said, in their defense.
"Besides, it is not as if you have one yourself," Hotaru whispered, under her breath.
That stopped Mina dead in her tracks. She was so embarrassed, she was speechless. She just dropped her hand and turned back to the group.
Everyone laughed and started back talking.
"Speaking of that," Lita said, "how are you four here if you are supposed to be making sure nothing gets passed the Milky Way. My planet is the first one they would get to."
"We have a handy new trick," Hotaru explained. "We made a barrier that would hold until we get back. There is not much activity out there nowadays, anyway."
"Do you not have to be very focused to do that?" Rei asked.
"Of course they do," Ami answered. "Their powers have always been much more advance than ours. They really might not have to focus very much, or the barrier could be tied straight to them. That way it would not take much power or focus."
"It takes great control to do something so advanced," India whispered, beneath her breathe.
"How does she always know these things?" Mina asked.
"She just reads a lot," Michelle laughed.
"What is going on over there?" Amara asked. She had been staring over at the crowd with Serenity and Endymion for a while.
"I think it is about the safety of Crystal Tokyo," India answered.
"As you know, there has not been much need for the Sailor Scouts for some time," Mina answered. "I was the leader myself for sometime, but eventually there was not any need for us."
"Now that everything has been settled as much as it can, they have decided to think of the security of Tokyo," Rei explained. "Even though things have been quite peaceful, we could still be attacked anytime. With us all queens of our own planets, and the New Silver Millennium intact, we have to be ready for anyone, at any given moment. In the past, there was always someone, somewhere trying to break the peace treaty. We have to take that into consideration and not be unguarded for long."
"As far as we know, Endymion is going to become the leader, but of course he cannot do it all on his own," Lita said. "We think he is going to need someone to help him out. We think that someone is India."
"What!?" India and the Outer Scouts nearly yelled.
"Even though Mina would be the leader, India is much more fit," Ami rationalized. "She is the strongest out of all of us. No offense, either, but that is what she was created for. It would only be reasonable for her to have the job."
"Would that be appropriate?" Amara questioned. "We do not want anything that should not to happen."
"Amara!" Michelle reprimanded.
"No," India said, "it is fine."
"Besides," Mina teased, devilishly, "India already has someone."
"That is not true!" India protested.
"Yes, it is," Rei cried. "He is actually over there." Rei pointed over to the crowd where Wisdom was talking with Iris and the others still.
"Maybe we should go over there and see what is going on," Amara thought.
"It would be a good idea to know what is going on," Michelle actually agreed.
Amara turned toward the group and headed towards them. Michelle and Trista followed after her. Hotaru quickly bowed to the others and said they would be back soon, quickly rushing to keep up.
"Why would Amara go over there?" India asked. "Is it because she does not want me to work with Endymion? Or is it that she just wants to see about our protection? It could not possibly be that she wants to make sure Wisdom is a bad person for me."
"I would say the first two," Mina answered.
"I do not know," Lita said questionably. "I think Amara actually has a soft spot for India. Even though she seems to be cold towards you, she still seems to want to make sure you are all right."
"Maybe," India replied thinking back to when Amara referred to her as the nickname she used most commonly for Serenity.
* "What is going on over here?" Amara asked.
"Amara, Michelle, Trista, and Hotaru; what are you doing here?" Serenity questioned, happily as she went to hug each.
"We decided to come visit," Hotaru told her, smiling. "With fighting all the bad guys, we needed a break desperately."
"So," Iris butted in, "I take it you are the Outer Senshi?"
"Yes, what of it?" Amara asked, rolling her eyes.
"I would really hate to ruin the moment," Iris began, faking consideration, "but what is your intake on the whole issue of the rest of the Soldiers returning to duty."
"We think it is a good idea," Michelle answered.
"It makes us feel better to do what we are doing is not all in vain," Trista replied. "We would not want the New Millennium to be overtaken by evil."
"Besides, we are queens too, it is not as if they are special and do not have to help out," Amara said, under her breath. Michelle gave her a look that said be nice, causing Amara to look away. Then she thought about why she had come over. "Endymion, can I speak with you a moment?"
"Yes, of course," he responded. They each excused themselves and walked off to a more private part of the palace. "So, what do you want to talk about?"
"Maybe you should sit down," Amara suggested, taking a seat of her own.
Endymion went ahead and sat down across from her.
"How has your marriage been going lately?" Amara asked. "Has it improved any since the last time we came to visit?"
"No, if anything, it has been getting worse. Day after day, it is the same thing. Serenity's getting more needy, and I do not think I can do anything to make her feel wanted. I don't have the love that it takes for her like before. Before I had closure, I was ready to love and fulfill Serenity's every wish. It has not been the same for years. Slowly, but surely, our marriage has been disintegrating."
"I know," Amara told him. "It must be even worse now."
"That is not fair." He looked up. "You know my marriage was bad before all this shit even started happening."
"But it has been getting worse since then, has it not?" Amara inquired. "It even started to accelerate since then."
"Yes." Endymion could not deny the fact that even the mention of India stirred emotions that had been dormant for years-centuries. "Maybe if all those impostors had not started to show, Serenity and I could have repaired our relationship, but they did. They did time after time causing me to think about her day in and day out. Every night I laid and thought about it. These feelings have tortured me for the past few years."
"So what do you expect to do about these feelings now that India is back?"
"I hate to say it, but I want to see where they are going to lead me."
"Lead you?" Amara asked, incredulously. "You already know where it is going to lead you. You have seen where it is leading you. Do you even remember those children that you met all those years ago? Those were yours. Do you even want to see what that puts Serenity through?"
"If it were not for those children this would be a cold and dark world with Nanashi as queen and every Sailor Soldier dead. Again, I would hate to say it, but I am willing to go through the bad." Endymion cradled his head in his hands, slouching. He paused for a moment before looking up once more. "I do not expect you to understand. You have never been put in this position. Michelle is always going to be there for you; you her.
"My love for Serenity is not as strong as it was when India left, and it has never been strong enough to keep me away from her. Even when I did not even have a memory of India, I could feel myself pulled to her, and my love for Serenity did not do a damn thing to stop it." Endymion caught himself and tried to calm down.
"Moon Face does not deserve this," Amara protested.
"Does she not?" Endymion said, almost cold. "She knew what she was getting herself into. There was no real guarantee that India would not return. For the moment, I was all Serenity's to hold and to love, but even I knew that it would not last. Even with all she has matured over the years, Serenity tries not to face the truth until it is almost, or is, too late."
Amara looked at Endymion surprised, as if she did not even know who this person was. "I did not know you thought so little of her."
"I do not think little of her. I love and protect her. I give her anything she desires. I have been her own little slave for centuries, but what about when it comes to what I want? She cannot give it to me, and that is because I do not want her. I know that will always be hard for her to accept, but it is the truth. What the heart wants, the heart wants."
"But what about Serenity?"
"But what about Serenity?" Endymion laughed. "It is really funny that I never heard that out of your mouth during the Silver Millennium saying, 'But what about India?' Is it because you feel that Serenity needs more protecting than India? Do you think India is strong both mentally and physically because she was created to fight? Do you think you can deny her love because she can take a hit in the field? Only a heartless bastard does not have some weak point. I would think you would know that."
Amara was speechless. After a moment, she gained her composure. "This conversation is not going anywhere." She stood up and headed towards the door. Before walking out, she looked back. "I am sorry I wasted your time."
Endymion sat there staring after her. Slowly, he got up and prepared to return to the party. He walked out the room to return to Serenity's side.
Amara watched Endymion as he emerged from the room. He walked over to Serenity putting his arm around her waste and kissing her on the cheek. Amara wondered how he could so easily put on a face that looked authentic. Did Serenity even notice it, or was she only too willing to accept the lie?