Author's Notes: Hello, everyone! Thank you all for your reviews; it is much appreciated! ^-^ And, no, Hotaru will not hook back up with Matthew. I'm not that forgiving. *evil grin*
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CHAPTER 9 – CONVERSATION IN A NEW LIGHT
Hotaru shook her head at the mere thought of Matthew, her violet eyes narrow in exasperation. With a waving motion, she caught Setsuna's eye and motioned to the balcony. Setsuna gave a nod, brushing a dark green piece of hair behind her shoulder. Hotaru grinned, rolled her eyes, and then waved. The Keeper of Time gave a small laugh before waving back. The young princess made her way through the crowd, deliberately avoiding the dance floor, on her way to the balcony.
"Excuse me," came a polite voice. Hotaru turned her head to get a good look at whoever it was that spoke to her. It seemed to be a man from Jupiter, his dark brown hair brushed neatly, and ending at his shoulders. He had lovely hazel eyes and a bright smile. "May I have this dance, Lady Hotaru?" The Saturn princess gave him a wry smile before turning him down and leaving. Did he actually think she could dance? She'd never even tried!
Weaving in and out of people, Hotaru finally made it to the balcony, where Matthew was waiting. He was leaning against the silver railing, ebony eyes thoughtful as he looked down onto the scenery below. One or two couples were hidden in the shadows. Sighing, she walked over to him and also leaned against the railing, keeping herself at a good distance away from him. His gaze flickered to her, giving her a once-over. A dark violet dress, black sash with off-center bow, too long to see the shoes she was wearing, a ruffled ribbon around her neck to secure the dress in place, a silver bracelet with one or two lavender charms, black gloves that went up to her wrists, a violet ribbon in her hair, and a crown, signifying her as a princess. He managed a half-smile at the coldness in her violet eyes. Her gaze flickered to him, and, seeing him stare at her, she scowled. "What do you want?" asked Hotaru in a terse tone. When he didn't answer right away, she added snappily, "Spit it out!" She glared at the grin he was giving her.
"Why must you give me such a cold reception?" he asked lightly, in the smooth way of talking he had used on the woman from Mars. "After all, I am your fiancé. You're not even giving me an embrace?" The frosty look she gave him made the smile fade slightly from his face.
"If you think your smooth talk is going to win me over after you abused me, ignored me, insulted me, and sent me away, you are sadly mistaken!" she hissed at him, her voice clipped with anger. The smile faded even more. "You better not get me really angry. I'm actually glad you sent me away. It made me realize what an ignorant bastard you were. Wait. Let me correct that. It made me realize what an ignorant bastard you are. And, if I had stayed with you, my beloved, my natural powers would never have reached the state they're in now. With one swipe of my Glaive, you could be dust. I mean, sure, it would mean the whole palace, my friends, and me would die, too, but wouldn't it be worth it, beloved?!" As she spoke, her voice had been slowly rising and now she was practically shouting. The smile was nowhere to be seen on Matthew's face. It had been replaced by a tinge of fear. "Afraid are you?" she asked, in a deadly quiet voice. "You didn't seem that afraid when you were dragging me out of my room to get RID OF ME!" Her voice cracked and she took in a couple deep breaths while glaring daggers at him. Her glare didn't waver even when she saw the sadness in his ebony eyes.
Matthew ran a hand through his dark violet hair and sighed. "If you're saying I was foolish to do that—" She cut him off, angry as ever.
"Foolish? Foolish, Matthew? No, not foolish! IDIOTIC! Unwise! Rash! Reckless! Dumb! Stupid! Thoughtless! Imprudent! UNINTELLIGENT!" He held up a hand to stop her, and she fell silent, still glaring. Matthew looked at her.
"It was foolish, I do admit that. But everyone makes mistakes. Can you forgive me for mine?" he asked quietly. Hotaru exploded, releasing all the pent-up energy she had stored away.
"FORGIVE YOU?!" she fumed. "How could I forgive you, Matthew, for everything you did to me? Everything? The list I had gone on with before didn't even do justice to all the things you've done to me! Hah! And you expect me to forgive you? Look, Matthew, I am not the same little girl I was once before. And you realize that, otherwise you wouldn't be talking to me now! You don't just go on and change your mind about something like this in a mere second! Damn it, Matthew!" She was more than prepared to go on, but was interrupted by warm arms around her and Matthew's lips pressed against her own in a serene kiss. Hotaru froze for a moment, eyes wide, red creeping up her cheeks. But then she seemed to recover and forced him off of her, marching closer to him and slapping him with as much strength as she could muster. "AND THEN YOU GO AND DO THAT!" she shouted, enraged, before storming off of the balcony.
Matthew touched his cheek where she had slapped him. Damn, she had a good right hook. He could just picture that spot turning red. He watched the violet folds of her dress sweep out of his vision and into the crowd. Shaking his head and sighing, he leaned back against the railing again. The old embrace-and-kiss had worked on those others...
Hotaru was fuming, and it enraged her all the more because she was still blushing. Well, all she needed was a little time to cool off. She exited the palace, cast a furtive glance at Princess Serenity and Prince Endymion, then clutched her henshin stick and vanished in a violet glow.
She reappeared on the Phobos, one of Mars's moons, the closest place she could find to cool off. She took a couple of deep breaths and looked around at the scenery. That Matthew was so dense. Hotaru gently removed her crown and placed it on the ground beside her. Heaving another sigh, she pulled her knees up to her chin and buried her head in her hands.