Part Two: A Game of Pawns
-or-
The Enemy of My Enemy.....
***
GLYPH (WRITTEN SYMBOL): The symbol represents a Virgin, for it is a pictograph of the human reproductive organs closed and untouched. It symbolic terms, the glyph is a straight line connected to two curved lines, one of which is crossed. This represents wisdom tied to feeling and emotion, and crossed by practicality.
***
The Senshi sat in Ami's living room, worried. Rei's eyes were fastened on the man who lay in the sofa bed. Ami had left the house in such a hurry that she had forgotten to fold up the bed- which, in retrospect, was a good thing.
The teenagers had been very quiet since arriving. Jupiter and Venus, still in Senshi form, had slid the unconscious Saffir into the bed. Ami then checked him over carefully, repairing whatever damage she could. The others had watched wordlessly, unsure what to make of the latest development.
Finally Usagi was the one to break the uneasy silence. "Is he going to be all right?" she asked Ami. Usagi wasn't concerned about the jakokuzuishou or the potential danger having one of the Black Moon Family in their midst; she was worried about the welfare of a man who could still prove to be the enemy- typical of her.
"Physically, I think he'll be fine. He heals at an astounding rate- second only to us in our Senshi forms." Ami paused before continuing, looking down at her feet, trying to find the right words. "Mentally, though... I'm not sure. When Demando rejected him, I could have sworn I felt something snap inside of Saffir."
Minako looked at Ami in surprise. Mercury was the gentlest of the Senshi, and aside from Usagi, the most likely to feel sympathy for an enemy. The occasional looks at Saffir Ami was stealing caused Minako to have a sense of alarm run through her- along with an unknown feeling. She frowned, losing track of the conversation that was continuing without her.
"Snap? What do you mean?" Luna asked.
"She means that Saffir just had his heart broken," a masculine voice came from the doorway.
The Senshi lifted their heads, startled. Usagi rose to her feet and lunged, wrapping her arms tightly around the man's waist. "Mamo-chan," she sighed into his chest, pressing her cheek against the place where his heart beat for her.
Mamoru's hand caressed the long golden hair and a faint smile touched his face. His voice, though, was serious as he continued. "I was the only one close enough to hear what Demando said to him: 'I have no brother,'" Mamoru finished.
"That's-that's- inhumane!" Rei exploded. "Even the Black Moon Family couldn't be so cruel to one of their own!"
"Apparently they can," Makoto said bitterly. "I guess even family isn't sacred anymore." The brunette Senshi was furious. She had lost her family to an accident, so she treasured the meaning of it above anything else. Rejecting a family member willingly was the most abhorable act she could imagine.
Mamoru moved over to the loveseat, still accessorized by a blonde Odango Atama. He settled onto it carefully, wrapping his arms around her tightly. The destined lovers had been having a rough time lately, first with the dreams, then Demando's fascination with Usagi, and finally the loss of their future daughter.
Minako looked at them, feeling the bond that bound them together tighter then any marriage vows. A frown appeared on her pretty face. She glanced at Ami, then at Saffir and suddenly she realized what her other feeling had been. Her powers as the Senshi of Love were giving her a premonition of a dangerous possibility. Please, Ami, she thought. Don't do it. He's the enemy. You can't fall in love with Saffir.
Ami looked back and forth at the two men present. There was a startling resemblance between the two. She wondered if she was the only one who noticed, then saw Rei wearing a bemused expression on her sharp face.
"So when do you think he'll wake up?" Luna asked. As a cat, her knowledge of human physiology was somewhat limited.
"He may not wake up at all," Mamoru answered his beloved's guardian. "He's just lost his main reason for living. He may just slip into a coma and die. I've seen it happen before."
"No," Ami objected. "He'll wake up. Just because Demando rejected him, it doesn't mean Saffir rejected Demando. He'll wake up," she reiterated.
"The question is what do we do with him?" Artemis asked.
"He'll stay here, of course," Ami answered as though she was stating the obvious.
"It's not safe!" Rei protested, fearing for her friend's well being.
"He didn't do anything to me last time," Ami reminded her.
"He still had something to lose. Maybe he'll try to regain Demando's favor by killing a Senshi," Rei told her angrily, shaking her finger in Ami's face the way she usually reserved for Usagi.
Usagi lifted her head from Mamoru's warm body and looked at her friends with serene confidence. "No, he won't hurt Ami," she said softly. "He's smarter then that. Besides, I don't think he's the type to kill someone in cold blood."
Luna looked at her charge, well aware of Usagi's ability to perceive the soul of a person. "Someone should at least stay with Ami-chan."
Mamoru opened his mouth to volunteer, recognizing that he was the most obvious choice, but Artemis spoke first. "Luna or I should stay- Saffir might construe having another Senshi around as a threat."
"Are you volunteering?" Minako asked.
Artemis uncurled himself from Minako's lap, doing his best to look fierce. "If Ami-chan needs me, of course I will stay and defend her!" he declared grandly.
The Senshi hid their smiles behind their hands, careful not to offend the small creature's pride. "He does have a good point," Luna conceded.
"Well, he's certainly welcome to stay," Ami said. She smiled as Artemis crawled onto her legs. He started to purr as she scratched behind his ear in just the right place... and the rest of the Senshi wondered why he and Luna took every chance they got to spend time with Ami.
"But who is going to stay with Saffir during school hours? He's not exactly a common human. I guess we could ask Petz or one of her sisters..." Rei said, trailing off.
"I'll stay," Ami said. "I'm far enough ahead that I can afford to miss a few days of classes."
Dead silence greeted her statement. Ami miss class? The very idea of Ami voluntarily missing school was anathema to everything they had come to know of her. "But, Ami-chan, we have a math test!" Usagi protested.
"I'm sure Haruna-sensei will let me take it later," she answered. "This is more important. If he decides to be... difficult, the Ayakashi sisters don't have the powers anymore that could stop him. It has to be either a Senshi or Tuxedo Kamen."
Rei prepared for a long drawn out argument, her violet eyes flashing with the fire she
commanded as Sailor Mars. Makoto touched her shoulder, subtlety shaking her.
"Now that the issue of Saffir has been taken care of for the time being, we can move onto more important matters," Luna said, moving the conversation along as smoothly as an experienced politician. "What are we going to do about Chibi-Usa?"
Mamoru and Usagi seemed to cling to each other tighter at the sound of that name. The Senshi could practically feel the heartache rolling off the pair. Mamoru shut his eyes and tried to find something semi-lucid to say. "I gave her a rose," he said finally.
"Huh?" Minako asked.
"Roses have ever been the symbol of love. I gave her a white one, just so she knew we still loved her, no matter what happens."
"That's sweet of you," Minako said.
"Sweet or not, it doesn't do us much good," Luna said primly. "We have to deal with her sometime- and it may not be very pretty. She's powerful- and the time may come where one of you has to kill her... or be killed yourself."
The idea was repulsive to everyone present in the room. Usagi's nails dug into her lover's waist as she spoke up. "We can't kill her!"
"Even to save the world? I have the uneasy feeling that might be the choice you are forced to make," Luna informed her. Luna hated having to be so cold, but it was her duty to make sure the Sailors were aware of the danger.
"Without her, there will be no world," Usagi responded softly. "I'm sure it won't come to that- within that monstrosity that calls herself Black Lady somewhere there is still my Chibi-Usa."
The Senshi weren't really able to think of anything else to say. One by one they excused themselves, claiming that they had to get ready for school, as it was rapidly approaching seven am. Finally only Ami was left. She looked down at the man who was sleeping like the dead. She envied him for being able to find blessed peace.
***
"Virgo is reserved, modest, practical, discriminating and industrious, analytical, and painstaking, seeking to know and understand."
***
Ami lifted her head from the book she was reading as the doorbell cheerfully announced that someone was outside. Glancing at the clock, she was surprised that it was already past noon. She limped towards the door, her body still sore from her early morning battle.
I doubt the Black Moon Family would bother with the doorbell, she thought as she unlocked the chain. She swung the door open and smiled as she saw two of the Ayakashi sisters, Petz and Beruche. Beruche had a box in her hands and looked like her normal self, yet Petz wore a hesitant expression on her pretty face.
"Good afternoon, Ami-chan," Beruche said. "We stopped by to see how you were managing with Saffir. Cooan and Calaveras had to watch the business, or else they would have come, too."
"Come in, come in," Ami said, backing up so her guests could enter. After the two older woman had removed their shoes, they went into the living room.
Petz stared at Saffir with an odd sort of longing on her face. Ami watched as she smoothed his hair back from his forehead. "He's even more beautiful then the last time I saw him. I didn't think it was possible," Petz said softly.
Ami wasn't sure what to say. "Were you... involved?" she asked delicately.
"A while ago," the older sister responded. "Lovers, and maybe even friends- at least, as close to friendship as the Family gets. It broke off before I went back into time, though. Saffir just wasn't able to stay interested in me. I'm not intelligent enough."
"Don't say that!" Beruche reprimanded her sister. "You're very smart. It's just that Saffir is so much more intelligent then anyone else around, Ami-chan. He's Demando's main tactician, and he's also the one who did a lot of the weapon design for the conquest of Crystal Tokyo. I've never met anyone with his sheer brilliance."
Ami's face grew darker as Beruche began to describe some of Saffir's accomplishments. Science and math were his fortes, as they were hers. He was apparently an accomplished scientist (alchemy and physics being his particular field, though mechanics were also easy for him) and mathematician, and had even managed to create a way to transfer magical power into a more practical form that could be harnessed for other purposes. When Beruche concluded by informing her that Saffir was the one who had designed the droidos, Ami almost had a heart attack. All this and he was only twenty-two! It was mind-boggling. She wondered what would have happened if Saffir had been the Prince instead of Demando. For some reason, she didn't like the idea.
Ami was tempted to wake Artemis up. Artemis was asleep on her bed, getting in some much-needed rest. Cats needed around sixteen hours of sleep a day, and having Minako as his charge certainly wasn't condusive to THAT happening. Something warned her to wait for a while, and internal instinct she had learned not to ignore.
"He's very close to Demando, isn't he, Beruche-chan?" Ami asked, wanting to get a fuller perspective on the situation.
Beruche wasn't the one who answered. "He believes the world revolves around Demando-sama," Petz said. "Their father, Onyx, died when Saffir was very young. For all practical purposes, Demando was the one who raised him. Saffir is fiercely loyal to his oniisan."
Ami blanched. Things were just getting worse and worse. First she found out that Saffir was much more dangerous then she believed, now she learned that he was likely to be even more upset then she had anticipated. She certainly didn't need such a loose cannon around. Her day was just getting worse and worse.
Beruche finally noticed the worry that was playing across Ami's face. "I wish I could say something to reassure you, but Saffir is dangerous. The Blue Prince may even be more dangerous then Demando-sama when it comes down to it. Demando loves his people, his brother, and the Neo Queen. Saffir loves only Demando. But Saffir is a good man- true to his word."
"The Blue Prince?" Ami asked.
"Saffir is Demando-sama's brother, heir to the thrown of Nemesis. Demando is called the White Prince, for reasons that are obvious when you see him. So they call Saffir the Blue Prince, almost as a nickname."
"Then Saffir has no loyalties other than to his brother?" Ami asked, trying to pry information out of Beruche, the more talkative sister. Petz was sitting by Saffir, watching him breath as though each breath he took might be his last.
"None," Beruche answered confidently.
"That may make things even worse then they already are," Ami said. She quickly informed the sisters of Demando's rejection of Saffir.
They looked at her, horror-stricken. "No," Beruche whispered, moving away from Saffir suddenly, as though she had suddenly become aware of a viper at her breasts. "A Saffir without anything to lose?" The idea was enough to give her nightmares.
Petz looked up with crazed eyes. "Impossible! Demando loves Saffir, I know that! Demando couldn't have meant that! He'll apologize."
"Royalty, apologize? Especially the Crown Prince of Nemesis?" Beruche questioned. "I think he'll regret it, but he will never take it back. Demando is as hard as the diamond for which he was named."
"But what does that mean for Saffir?" Ami asked.
"It means I have to undo the Wiseman's influence over my older brother," Saffir said softly from where he was lying. While the three woman had been distracted by their conversation, Saffir had slowly regained consciousness. Overhearing the discussion, he had decided to keep his eyes closed and see what he could learn. It seemed that Sailor Mercury was carefully probing the Ayakashi sisters for information on him, not that he could blame her. He had to admire her subtlety. He had decided that he wasn't going to overhear anything useful, and intervened to prevent Beruche from spilling too much information about him. He forced himself to sit up.
The females in the room all spun around. Petz was the first to regain her voice. "I see that you're awake," she said in a gentle voice.
"Hello, Petz. It's been a while," was his response. The two former lovers met each other's eyes squarely, and Petz was the first to look away. She had looked into those icy eyes of his and seen nothing but spite. She may have secretly harbored hopes that there still might be something there, but no longer. One look into his face and she realized that there never had been anything to salvage. She doubted Saffir was capable of loving anyone aside from Demando.
"I- I had better get going," Petz said as she rose to her feet. "I just stopped by to say hello to Ami-chan," she lied hastily. Saffir just watched her with a stony expression as she hurried to the door, shoved her feet into her shoes and took off.
The room was silent as the three remaining people just sat there. Finally Beruche found her voice. "That really wasn't very nice of you, Saffir-kun," she reprimanded him.
"I didn't do anything," he replied coolly.
"Exactly."
Ami went over to Saffir to check for a temperature. His glare didn't daunt her because she refused to let it. "From what I understand, you're a pretty intelligent man," she said in her calm voice. "I need to check to make sure you don't have a fever from healing- it happens sometimes, especially with those of us who have magic in our nature."
He watched as she placed a clammy hand on his forehead. She's scared of me, he realized, though the idea that his enemies were afraid brought no joy to him. It brought no feeling. It seems I've gone into post-traumatic stress, he thought clinically. Having the very foundation of your world ripped out from underneath you must do that to a person.
"No fever," she pronounced, then scurried back to the safety of the loveseat.
"I brought something for you as a get-well present," Beruche announced to Saffir. He arched an eyebrow inquisitively as she handed him the box she had carried in. "I know you already have one, Ami-chan, but this made me think of Saffir-kun."
Saffir wasn't quite sure what to make of what was happening. A get-well present? Must be some kind of Earth custom he hadn't heard of. He took the box Beruche shoved cheerfully at him and opened it slowly, careful not to tear the paper in which it was wrapped. Neatness, order....
Inside was the most beautiful set of chess pieces he had ever seen. They were made up of a beautiful stone and each were carved into the traditional shapes- Saffir was a purist and Beruche had apparently remembered that. The white pieces each glinted in the room's light. Rather then black, though, the opposite color was a rich blue that matched his hair. He couldn't object to that change. He picked one up and looked at it with a speculative eye.
"You play?" Ami asked, the words forced from her.
Saffir nodded and Beruche giggled. "Who do you think taught me?" she asked.
"He did?" she asked, amazed.
"I did NOT teach her to cheat, though," he responded, on the defensive for the first time in Ami's presence.
"You're too rigid to ever want to," Beruche retaliated.
"Chess is an ancient game that deserves respect. I wouldn't want to cheat- I can beat anyone on my own merits. Besides, if I DID cheat, I wouldn't do it in a manner that I could get caught, unlike a certain someone I could name," Saffir said.
Ami wasn't sure she was able to take this in- Saffir was in prime form, sarcastic as anything. He didn't seem to be reacting to his brother's abandonment of him in the fashion that was to be expected.
"You don't need to cheat. When was the last time you lost a game?" Beruche demanded. "When you were five?" Her pale eyes lit up as she suggested, "Why don't you play Ami-chan. She's an excellent player." Then she made a pretense of looking at the clock. "I had better get going," she said, taking her leave of them with much more style then her older sister had.
Ami looked at Saffir and knew how well they had been set up. Beruche apparently had an agenda of her own, making sure that Saffir and Ami got along.
Saffir shrugged and slid out of the bed, wincing. His hands started to shakily set up the board.
"You really shouldn't be out of bed," Ami said hesitantly.
"My wounds are going to take a few days to heal enough for me to do anything about the current situation," he informed her. "If I just lie there, I'll go stark raving mad. Are you going to play?" he asked rather testily.
She smiled and took the white pieces. "This is a top-quality set!" she exclaimed as she felt how heavy the piece was and examined the detail on it.
"Nothing but the best for the Ayakashi sisters. Apparently some things don't change," he said, his voice full of something Ami couldn't identify readily. Could it be sadness? she wondered.
She moved out a pawn and waited for him to return her attack. He studied the board with a practice eye, and Ami felt goosebumps across her back. Saffir acted as a professional, rather then a casual player. He surveyed his options carefully before responding with a pawn, mirroring her opening.
Interesting choice, she thought as she considered the possibilities. "But some things do," Ami said, bringing one of her knights into play.
His face was expressionless as he shifted his queen forward, challenging Ami's defense. "But we don't have to accept that."
Ami was well aware of the multi-level game they were playing. "Perhaps," she replied mysteriously. She looked at the clock, gauging the time. "The rest of the Senshi will be out of school in a few hours," she informed him, moving her rook.
He took a pawn in response. "Shouldn't you be there as well?"
She captured a knight. "Yes, but you needed someone to look after you, and I decided I could afford to miss a few days of classes." She gestured towards the stack of books sitting on one of the end tables. "Besides, I usually learn more from books then from classes."
He spared her heavy pile a looked before taking another of her pawns. "I'm not surprised. I always found it trying to be in a group when learning- too many people to hold me back. You know, even in the future, Sailor Mercury is considered the most intelligent of the Senshi."
She blushed slightly, aware of his implied compliment. "Please don't tell me anything about the future. I prefer to think we make our own destiny." She moved one of her white pawns towards a bishop, hoping he would fall for her trap.
He didn't the bait. "Time is a fixed object. Ask Sailor Pluto- she watches it to protect what MUST happen. We merely exist within it, playing our destined parts," Saffir replied in a voice as cool as ice.
Ami disagreed with him. "Then what's the point of living?" she asked, finally bringing our her Queen to capture another of his pawns.
"Why play a game? You already know the outcome- someone will win, someone will lose, or there will be a tie," he stated. "You play for the fun of it." He pushed his Queen forward, grabbing a rook.
Ami's eyes flashed as she noticed his mistake. The Queen was now in range of her knight, and she could take it. Her nimble fingers followed through, satisfied that this was still something she could do well. Without his Queen, Saffir was at a major disadvantage.
A faint smile touched his lips, a smile that sent shivers down her spine. He moved a bishop, and the lay of the entire game changed. Her eyes widened as she realized that Saffir must have been planning this from the very beginning, and she, like a child, had walked right into it. He looked deeply into her eyes, and she was suddenly even more aware of the Black Moon on his forehead. "The Queen Sacrifice," he said softly.
"Checkmate."
***
"Virgos exude a feeling of peace and love- as a result, they have good relationships with others."
***
"Are you ok, love?"
Petz looked over her desk at her sisters Calaveras. Her eyes were soft and quiet, so different then they had been when she had been a servant of Rubeus. The sisters had grown very close since their healings.
"I will be," Petz answered, deciding to give up the pretense of doing paperwork.
The red-head came around and knelt down beside her older sister. "Do you want to tell me what happened?" Calaveras asked, taking Petz's cold hand in her own.
Petz smiled sadly. "Saffir-sama hasn't changed at all," she said as though that was enough.
It was indeed enough for Calaveras. Saffir was bitter and biting, extremely brilliant and frightening. She had never understood how Petz could love such a man, yet every now and then Saffir would blaze with a passion that was entrancing. True passion was rare on Nemesis. "And you still love him," she said softly.
"I suppose I always will. He holds part of my heart, whether he wants to or not." Petz's eyes glittered with unshed tears.
"Saffir is an idiot- he doesn't realize what a treasure he holds," Calaveras said angrily.
The idea of Saffir not being brilliant forced a laugh from Petz. "No, Calaveras. It is not his fault. He simply was never allowed to learn to love anyone but Demando-sama." She squeezed Calaveras' hand reassuringly. "In a way, I'm glad I saw him. Saffir was my last link to the Black Moon Family. Now that that tie is severed, I have closure on that chapter of my life. I can move forward with no more regrets."
Petz stood up, taking Calaveras with her. "Let's close shop a little early today and do some shopping. I could use a new outfit. I have a date this Saturday," Petz said.
Calaveras followed her sister out of the room, sure that Petz would be ok. The last part of her healing had finally begun.
***
ELEMENTS: Earth and Water.
***
The Wiseman's hands curled around the globe, summoning the energies of his master, the Death Phantom. Beside him sat Black Lady, who was twirling a white rose between her fingers with a rather thoughtful look on her striking face. Every now and then she looked up at the creature that had led her down such a dark path, her expression thoughtful.
Dark power enveloped her in a thick haze of hatred, yet the simple rose was more fascinating to her then the possibility of world destruction. Why had Tuxedo Mask bothered to give it to her? His roses were made up of his very essence, and by giving it to her, he had given up some of himself.
The Wiseman, though, wasn't overly concerned with her distraction. Things were going much better then he had originally planned. Saffir, Demando's irritating younger brother, was finally out of the picture. True, the Wiseman would have preferred to have him killed (death was a much cleaner solutions to life's little "problems"), but perhaps things had worked out for the best. Rubeus and Esmeraude were gone as well; that left him as the White Prince's only trusted confident. As long as Demando continued to believe Saffir had betrayed him (the very idea of it amused the Wiseman, who had seen the hero-worship in Saffir's face too many times to count), he would not take anyone into his inner circle. The stage was set; all that remained was for the Death Phantom to make his entrance.
Saffir's theft of the Crystal Key Card made things more difficult then the Wiseman would have liked, but hunting it down would have been futile. The Wiseman, no slouched with the jakozuishou himself, had to redesign the command center to by-pass the need for the Card. It lacked efficiency, and no more power could be added, but there was enough power in there already as long as he used in carefully... all the Crystal had to do was cycle a few more times.....
"It is strange, is it not, Black Lady, that the House of the Black Moon all hinged on the love of brothers?" he mused aloud.
She nodded, agreeing with her Master completely. "The House was doomed to fall anyway. Saffir was a weakling," she said.
The Wiseman's eyes flared with the light that meant he was incensed or impassioned. "No. Saffir is stronger then Demando- our Prince has a fatal flaw that I will be able to exploit. Without his younger brother's protection, Nemesis will fall that much quicker."
The derisive snort that greeted his words showed Black Lady's opinion of that. "Saffir never left the jakozuishou or his study long enough to be any problem."
"He was the brains- Demando was the beauty. If the Prince had listened to Saffir, perhaps this battle would have been more difficult. Or if Saffir had been the Prince- now HE would have been a worthy foe." The Wiseman's hands stilled for a second as he considered that might-have-been before resuming their swirling motions. "It is no matter. By now he has been suitably disposed of- either one of the Senshi killed him, or he died of the injuries you gave him."
Black Lady wanted to disagree about Saffir's fate, but decided it wasn't worth her time. She continued to fiddle with the rose, trying to figure out the puzzle that had been offered to her by Sailor Moon's lover. Could this be the same man who would later become her father?
"How much longer until the jakozuishou will be ready?" Black Lady asked.
"Three days," the Wiseman replied. "Three days until we open the Dark Gate."
***
"Hard workers and conscientious, Virgos are perfectionists with little tolerance for shoddy work. There is no place in their world for people who are footloose and fancy free."
***
The final bell rang, and the students were set free from the imprisoning school-building. Usually one Tsukino Usagi would be at the head of the rush (unless a certain infamous phenomenon know as detention reared its ugly head), but today, she rose quietly from her desk.
Gathering her books to her chest protectively against her chest, she started to move slowly towards the doorway, her eyes on her scuffed shoes. Haruna-sensei watched as the girl left, wondering exactly when the world had started to fall apart.
Usagi's body language spoke of utter hopelessness. Rather then bounce along the way she did usually, she walked at a sedate place that would have had her mother checking for a fever. She slumped along, and even her ponytails seemed to be drooping.
She looked up at the sky, wondering where Chibi-Usa was. She carefully averted her gaze from the Dark Crystal, wondering why the rest of the world kept spinning when things should skid to a halt. Didn't anyone understand how much danger they all were in? she wondered. People were still going to work, going to school and caring on as usual when they should be celebrating what could be the last days of their lives. Perhaps they all expect the Senshi to save them again with some miracle, she thought sadly. The problem is the Senshi may have run out of miracles to go round.
A shriek interrupted her uncharacteristically serious thoughts. "Usagi-chan!" Minako hollered as she coasted to a stop. "We should be heading over to Ami's."
Usagi frowned, looking around for Artemis. He wasn't in Minako's basket or on her shoulder, his two customary places. "Where's Artemis?" she asked.
"And they call ME an airhead," Minako muttered in a somewhat offended tone. "He's at Ami's- remember? There's a member of the Black Moon Family there?"
"Gomen nasai," Usagi replied. "I was thinking about other things. Are Makoto and Rei going there as well?" she asked.
Minako sighed. Even though Usagi actually had a reason for being out of it (not that she usually needed one), it was frustrating to deal with her. "Yes, Usagi-chan. They're already on there way- Mako-chan went to pick up Luna, so that's why they sent me to remind you."
The former Sailor V grabbed Usagi's wrist and started to pull her along at rapid pace. "Slow down, Minako-chan!" Usagi protested. "I have all my books!"
Minako dropped her friend's hand and smiled guilty. "Gomen ne," she said.
Usagi looked at the Venus Senshi and then her eyes narrowed. "You're in an awfully big hurry, aren't you? Is something wrong?"
Minako's eyes were somber as she looked at her princess. "It's... it's nothing," she said finally.
This time it was Usagi who was doing the grabbing. Her eyes were steady as she held onto Minako's shoulder firmly. "What's wrong," she said, making it a command to be answered. Every now and then, flashes of the princess Usagi had been would come through.
Minako always had to resist the urge to genuflect when Usagi spoke like that. "I do not want to leave Saffir-san and Ami-chan alone... I got the strangest feeling that if we're not careful, something could happen."
"Like what?" Usagi asked.
"I am the Senshi of Love, and when I look at those two, I see the possibility of romance between them," the Venus Senshi admitted, hating to put another burden on Usagi's already overloaded shoulders.
"There's that possibility for everyone," Usagi said, not getting the point.
"Not like this- a soul consuming relationship, where only the other partner matters," Minako said worriedly, trying to find the words to articulate her concerns and fears.
"Like me and Mamo-chan?" Usagi asked, trying to put it into terms she understood.
"Exactly- but Saffir-san is a member of the Black Moon Family. With him and Ami-chan, it would be a constant struggle for dominance- and I can just see her giving into whatever he wanted to keep him happy. She's very traditional when it comes to serious things like marriage."
Usagi chewed on her lip, trying to find it in herself to argue on Ami's behalf, but had to concede that Minako was right. "Are you sure?" she asked. "I mean, you've only seen them together once. You could be wrong."
"I hope I am," Minako said softly.
Usagi was about to reply, but then she heard a distant clock chime, reminding her of the time. Her eyes widened in horror. "We're so LATE!" she said, beginning one of her famous I'm-so-late-why-can't-I-ever-win sprints towards Ami's apartment complex.
Minako followed hot on her heels, no stranger to being late herself. The strange thing about dealing with Usagi, Minako thought as they rounded a corner, careening wildly over the sidewalks, is that I think she suffers from multiple personality syndrome. Just when she's finally acting like a leader, she goes back into her childishness.
The two blondes ran as quickly as they could, Usagi momentarily forgetting her depression. Their feet pounded as they finally reached their destination. Climbing into the elevator, the dangerous duo impatiently waited for it to deliver them to Ami's floor. Taking a sideways glance, they pulled out their henshin jewelry and changed, determined to keep their identities secret from Saffir as long as possible. Every advantage they could find might help.
Together, the blonde bombshells barged into her home, not even bothering to take off their shoes as was customary. They skidded to a stop as they took in what was happening.
Surprisingly, they were the first to arrive. Saffir was awake and sitting on the floor, staring at a chess board. Ami sat on the opposite side of the table, a small smile playing on her usually somber face. The pair looked up and returned their attention to the game.
"Hello. Mars-chan called and said she'd be a little late- something came up with another student and she had to stay. Jupiter-chan should be here any minute. Help yourself to whatever's in the fridge," Ami said absentmindedly, not really paying attention to her close friends. Her formidable intellect was concentrated on the game in front of her. Saffir had beat her three times our of every four, and she wanted to finish their little chess marathon on a win. Saffir seemed equally determined that she not defeat him again.
Ami had defeated Beruche's teacher twice, to his astonishment. The look on his face when she manavered him into that first checkmate had been priceless- for once, rather then an enemy, he had looked like an overly cocky young man who had just been handed his confidence back on a platter. It was satisfying for her to challenge him- so few could challenge her mentally, and she was painfully aware of how poor her fighting skills were. An equal.....
The two others hurried into the kitchen to bring out food, Usagi carrying what would have been a three-course meal for most people, proclaiming it as a light snack. Saffir watched Sailor Moon while pretending to concentrate on the chess game. Of all the people in any world, or any time for that matter, this was the person he despised most. Without her, the Wiseman would never have been able to get his claws into Demando. The blonde sat down in a chair and proceeded to stuff her face in a graceless fashion, and Saffir felt the antipathy flair like a fire that had had gasoline thrown on it. His brother risked everything for this creature?
Usagi was blissfully unaware of the man's hatred, concentrating on her soda. Food had always been a refuge for her, when people said she was too stupid, or when something was wrong in her life. She was slurping the last bit down when the door burst open, admitting a worried Sailor Mars. She, too, took in Ami and Saffir's preoccupation with an unusual amount of interest.
"Jupiter's still not here?!" she exclaimed in a concern voice.
"She went to get Luna," Venus exclaimed, looking up from the fashion magazine she was browsing through. The Senshi of Beauty clicked her teeth derisively, wondering who had decided Meiou Setsuna knew anything about fashion. That woman's stuck back in the seventies....
Mars just sat down on the floor, shaking her head. Any press photographer would give their eye teeth to be able to see this scene- the Sailor Senshi hanging out in full uniform. Scowling fiercely, Sailor Mars understood that nothing would get done until Luna arrived- but she didn't have to like it. She decided that she'd spend the time making more ofuda... she had the feeling she might be needed them soon. A small part of her was tempted to hit Saffir right where his moon was and watch what happened. Bet that would distract him, she thought with malicious amusement as she prepared the calligraphy pens she'd taken from Ami's desk. She managed to quell the impulse.... barely.
"Checkmate!" Ami announced gleefully, the sudden sound breaking through the quiet room. "Got you this time, Saffir-san!"
He tilted his head, managing to look boyishly charming without meaning to. He studied the board, looking for some escape, but found none. "Hai. But that's only the third time you've won. I've defeated you ten games out of thirteen."
This of course, set all of the Senshi even further on edge. They had always believed that Ami was the most brilliant person they had ever known, and had relied on this for them to defeat their enemies. The news that she had lost so many times at chess -one of her strongest talents- was enough to make Saffir go from "dangerous commodity" to "dangerous intelligent enemy".
Sailor Jupiter walked into this minefield, unaware that one misstep would set off the explosives. She dropped Luna onto the floor casually, then plopped onto a chair, stretching her long legs. "We all ready?" she asked.
Decision time. Usagi looked around and saw the dislike on Rei's and Minako's expressions, Ami's somewhat distracted manner, Saffir's coolness and Makoto's confusion. "Yes. Saffir-san, tell us what you know of the jakozuishou," she commanded.
His eyes flashed brilliantly. "I will not betray my people," he said softly.
"Even though they tried to kill you?" Rei demanded, not understanding how he could possibly forgive him.
"It wasn't their fault!" he protested angrily. Then he flushed, the warm color highlighting his strong cheekbones.
"Oh? How about Esmeraude? And Rubeus? I could easily see either of them trying to kill their own mother, let alone you!" Mars snapped.
"They weren't always like that," he whispered, a subconcious hand touching his ear which lacked the charecteristic black crystal earring worn by every other member of the Black Moon Family.
Ami picked his hand up, leaning over the chess board, scattering a few of the pieces carelessly. "Saffir-san, you must tell us what happened. If you ever want to see Demando-sama free from the Wiseman, we must know!"
Kind blue eyes clashed with glacial ones, Ami holding firm until she saw cracks in his facade. "But you're the enemy...." he whispered.
"There's a saying, I think it's Middle Eastern... 'The enemy of my enemy is my friend,'" Ami informed him. "Trust us, Saffir-san," she said, squeezing his hand gently.
Intellectually, Saffir realized that he was unable to justifying betraying everything he had learned since birth, yet if it saved Demando-sama... "The Wiseman isn't really a part of the Black Moon Family."
"We guessed that," Jupiter said, irony lacing her words. The Senshi, in spite of themselves, had shifted to a more recepetive posture, sensing that Saffir was going to spill.
He shut his eyes, trying to decide exactly where to begin his story.
-or-
The Enemy of My Enemy.....
***
GLYPH (WRITTEN SYMBOL): The symbol represents a Virgin, for it is a pictograph of the human reproductive organs closed and untouched. It symbolic terms, the glyph is a straight line connected to two curved lines, one of which is crossed. This represents wisdom tied to feeling and emotion, and crossed by practicality.
***
The Senshi sat in Ami's living room, worried. Rei's eyes were fastened on the man who lay in the sofa bed. Ami had left the house in such a hurry that she had forgotten to fold up the bed- which, in retrospect, was a good thing.
The teenagers had been very quiet since arriving. Jupiter and Venus, still in Senshi form, had slid the unconscious Saffir into the bed. Ami then checked him over carefully, repairing whatever damage she could. The others had watched wordlessly, unsure what to make of the latest development.
Finally Usagi was the one to break the uneasy silence. "Is he going to be all right?" she asked Ami. Usagi wasn't concerned about the jakokuzuishou or the potential danger having one of the Black Moon Family in their midst; she was worried about the welfare of a man who could still prove to be the enemy- typical of her.
"Physically, I think he'll be fine. He heals at an astounding rate- second only to us in our Senshi forms." Ami paused before continuing, looking down at her feet, trying to find the right words. "Mentally, though... I'm not sure. When Demando rejected him, I could have sworn I felt something snap inside of Saffir."
Minako looked at Ami in surprise. Mercury was the gentlest of the Senshi, and aside from Usagi, the most likely to feel sympathy for an enemy. The occasional looks at Saffir Ami was stealing caused Minako to have a sense of alarm run through her- along with an unknown feeling. She frowned, losing track of the conversation that was continuing without her.
"Snap? What do you mean?" Luna asked.
"She means that Saffir just had his heart broken," a masculine voice came from the doorway.
The Senshi lifted their heads, startled. Usagi rose to her feet and lunged, wrapping her arms tightly around the man's waist. "Mamo-chan," she sighed into his chest, pressing her cheek against the place where his heart beat for her.
Mamoru's hand caressed the long golden hair and a faint smile touched his face. His voice, though, was serious as he continued. "I was the only one close enough to hear what Demando said to him: 'I have no brother,'" Mamoru finished.
"That's-that's- inhumane!" Rei exploded. "Even the Black Moon Family couldn't be so cruel to one of their own!"
"Apparently they can," Makoto said bitterly. "I guess even family isn't sacred anymore." The brunette Senshi was furious. She had lost her family to an accident, so she treasured the meaning of it above anything else. Rejecting a family member willingly was the most abhorable act she could imagine.
Mamoru moved over to the loveseat, still accessorized by a blonde Odango Atama. He settled onto it carefully, wrapping his arms around her tightly. The destined lovers had been having a rough time lately, first with the dreams, then Demando's fascination with Usagi, and finally the loss of their future daughter.
Minako looked at them, feeling the bond that bound them together tighter then any marriage vows. A frown appeared on her pretty face. She glanced at Ami, then at Saffir and suddenly she realized what her other feeling had been. Her powers as the Senshi of Love were giving her a premonition of a dangerous possibility. Please, Ami, she thought. Don't do it. He's the enemy. You can't fall in love with Saffir.
Ami looked back and forth at the two men present. There was a startling resemblance between the two. She wondered if she was the only one who noticed, then saw Rei wearing a bemused expression on her sharp face.
"So when do you think he'll wake up?" Luna asked. As a cat, her knowledge of human physiology was somewhat limited.
"He may not wake up at all," Mamoru answered his beloved's guardian. "He's just lost his main reason for living. He may just slip into a coma and die. I've seen it happen before."
"No," Ami objected. "He'll wake up. Just because Demando rejected him, it doesn't mean Saffir rejected Demando. He'll wake up," she reiterated.
"The question is what do we do with him?" Artemis asked.
"He'll stay here, of course," Ami answered as though she was stating the obvious.
"It's not safe!" Rei protested, fearing for her friend's well being.
"He didn't do anything to me last time," Ami reminded her.
"He still had something to lose. Maybe he'll try to regain Demando's favor by killing a Senshi," Rei told her angrily, shaking her finger in Ami's face the way she usually reserved for Usagi.
Usagi lifted her head from Mamoru's warm body and looked at her friends with serene confidence. "No, he won't hurt Ami," she said softly. "He's smarter then that. Besides, I don't think he's the type to kill someone in cold blood."
Luna looked at her charge, well aware of Usagi's ability to perceive the soul of a person. "Someone should at least stay with Ami-chan."
Mamoru opened his mouth to volunteer, recognizing that he was the most obvious choice, but Artemis spoke first. "Luna or I should stay- Saffir might construe having another Senshi around as a threat."
"Are you volunteering?" Minako asked.
Artemis uncurled himself from Minako's lap, doing his best to look fierce. "If Ami-chan needs me, of course I will stay and defend her!" he declared grandly.
The Senshi hid their smiles behind their hands, careful not to offend the small creature's pride. "He does have a good point," Luna conceded.
"Well, he's certainly welcome to stay," Ami said. She smiled as Artemis crawled onto her legs. He started to purr as she scratched behind his ear in just the right place... and the rest of the Senshi wondered why he and Luna took every chance they got to spend time with Ami.
"But who is going to stay with Saffir during school hours? He's not exactly a common human. I guess we could ask Petz or one of her sisters..." Rei said, trailing off.
"I'll stay," Ami said. "I'm far enough ahead that I can afford to miss a few days of classes."
Dead silence greeted her statement. Ami miss class? The very idea of Ami voluntarily missing school was anathema to everything they had come to know of her. "But, Ami-chan, we have a math test!" Usagi protested.
"I'm sure Haruna-sensei will let me take it later," she answered. "This is more important. If he decides to be... difficult, the Ayakashi sisters don't have the powers anymore that could stop him. It has to be either a Senshi or Tuxedo Kamen."
Rei prepared for a long drawn out argument, her violet eyes flashing with the fire she
commanded as Sailor Mars. Makoto touched her shoulder, subtlety shaking her.
"Now that the issue of Saffir has been taken care of for the time being, we can move onto more important matters," Luna said, moving the conversation along as smoothly as an experienced politician. "What are we going to do about Chibi-Usa?"
Mamoru and Usagi seemed to cling to each other tighter at the sound of that name. The Senshi could practically feel the heartache rolling off the pair. Mamoru shut his eyes and tried to find something semi-lucid to say. "I gave her a rose," he said finally.
"Huh?" Minako asked.
"Roses have ever been the symbol of love. I gave her a white one, just so she knew we still loved her, no matter what happens."
"That's sweet of you," Minako said.
"Sweet or not, it doesn't do us much good," Luna said primly. "We have to deal with her sometime- and it may not be very pretty. She's powerful- and the time may come where one of you has to kill her... or be killed yourself."
The idea was repulsive to everyone present in the room. Usagi's nails dug into her lover's waist as she spoke up. "We can't kill her!"
"Even to save the world? I have the uneasy feeling that might be the choice you are forced to make," Luna informed her. Luna hated having to be so cold, but it was her duty to make sure the Sailors were aware of the danger.
"Without her, there will be no world," Usagi responded softly. "I'm sure it won't come to that- within that monstrosity that calls herself Black Lady somewhere there is still my Chibi-Usa."
The Senshi weren't really able to think of anything else to say. One by one they excused themselves, claiming that they had to get ready for school, as it was rapidly approaching seven am. Finally only Ami was left. She looked down at the man who was sleeping like the dead. She envied him for being able to find blessed peace.
***
"Virgo is reserved, modest, practical, discriminating and industrious, analytical, and painstaking, seeking to know and understand."
***
Ami lifted her head from the book she was reading as the doorbell cheerfully announced that someone was outside. Glancing at the clock, she was surprised that it was already past noon. She limped towards the door, her body still sore from her early morning battle.
I doubt the Black Moon Family would bother with the doorbell, she thought as she unlocked the chain. She swung the door open and smiled as she saw two of the Ayakashi sisters, Petz and Beruche. Beruche had a box in her hands and looked like her normal self, yet Petz wore a hesitant expression on her pretty face.
"Good afternoon, Ami-chan," Beruche said. "We stopped by to see how you were managing with Saffir. Cooan and Calaveras had to watch the business, or else they would have come, too."
"Come in, come in," Ami said, backing up so her guests could enter. After the two older woman had removed their shoes, they went into the living room.
Petz stared at Saffir with an odd sort of longing on her face. Ami watched as she smoothed his hair back from his forehead. "He's even more beautiful then the last time I saw him. I didn't think it was possible," Petz said softly.
Ami wasn't sure what to say. "Were you... involved?" she asked delicately.
"A while ago," the older sister responded. "Lovers, and maybe even friends- at least, as close to friendship as the Family gets. It broke off before I went back into time, though. Saffir just wasn't able to stay interested in me. I'm not intelligent enough."
"Don't say that!" Beruche reprimanded her sister. "You're very smart. It's just that Saffir is so much more intelligent then anyone else around, Ami-chan. He's Demando's main tactician, and he's also the one who did a lot of the weapon design for the conquest of Crystal Tokyo. I've never met anyone with his sheer brilliance."
Ami's face grew darker as Beruche began to describe some of Saffir's accomplishments. Science and math were his fortes, as they were hers. He was apparently an accomplished scientist (alchemy and physics being his particular field, though mechanics were also easy for him) and mathematician, and had even managed to create a way to transfer magical power into a more practical form that could be harnessed for other purposes. When Beruche concluded by informing her that Saffir was the one who had designed the droidos, Ami almost had a heart attack. All this and he was only twenty-two! It was mind-boggling. She wondered what would have happened if Saffir had been the Prince instead of Demando. For some reason, she didn't like the idea.
Ami was tempted to wake Artemis up. Artemis was asleep on her bed, getting in some much-needed rest. Cats needed around sixteen hours of sleep a day, and having Minako as his charge certainly wasn't condusive to THAT happening. Something warned her to wait for a while, and internal instinct she had learned not to ignore.
"He's very close to Demando, isn't he, Beruche-chan?" Ami asked, wanting to get a fuller perspective on the situation.
Beruche wasn't the one who answered. "He believes the world revolves around Demando-sama," Petz said. "Their father, Onyx, died when Saffir was very young. For all practical purposes, Demando was the one who raised him. Saffir is fiercely loyal to his oniisan."
Ami blanched. Things were just getting worse and worse. First she found out that Saffir was much more dangerous then she believed, now she learned that he was likely to be even more upset then she had anticipated. She certainly didn't need such a loose cannon around. Her day was just getting worse and worse.
Beruche finally noticed the worry that was playing across Ami's face. "I wish I could say something to reassure you, but Saffir is dangerous. The Blue Prince may even be more dangerous then Demando-sama when it comes down to it. Demando loves his people, his brother, and the Neo Queen. Saffir loves only Demando. But Saffir is a good man- true to his word."
"The Blue Prince?" Ami asked.
"Saffir is Demando-sama's brother, heir to the thrown of Nemesis. Demando is called the White Prince, for reasons that are obvious when you see him. So they call Saffir the Blue Prince, almost as a nickname."
"Then Saffir has no loyalties other than to his brother?" Ami asked, trying to pry information out of Beruche, the more talkative sister. Petz was sitting by Saffir, watching him breath as though each breath he took might be his last.
"None," Beruche answered confidently.
"That may make things even worse then they already are," Ami said. She quickly informed the sisters of Demando's rejection of Saffir.
They looked at her, horror-stricken. "No," Beruche whispered, moving away from Saffir suddenly, as though she had suddenly become aware of a viper at her breasts. "A Saffir without anything to lose?" The idea was enough to give her nightmares.
Petz looked up with crazed eyes. "Impossible! Demando loves Saffir, I know that! Demando couldn't have meant that! He'll apologize."
"Royalty, apologize? Especially the Crown Prince of Nemesis?" Beruche questioned. "I think he'll regret it, but he will never take it back. Demando is as hard as the diamond for which he was named."
"But what does that mean for Saffir?" Ami asked.
"It means I have to undo the Wiseman's influence over my older brother," Saffir said softly from where he was lying. While the three woman had been distracted by their conversation, Saffir had slowly regained consciousness. Overhearing the discussion, he had decided to keep his eyes closed and see what he could learn. It seemed that Sailor Mercury was carefully probing the Ayakashi sisters for information on him, not that he could blame her. He had to admire her subtlety. He had decided that he wasn't going to overhear anything useful, and intervened to prevent Beruche from spilling too much information about him. He forced himself to sit up.
The females in the room all spun around. Petz was the first to regain her voice. "I see that you're awake," she said in a gentle voice.
"Hello, Petz. It's been a while," was his response. The two former lovers met each other's eyes squarely, and Petz was the first to look away. She had looked into those icy eyes of his and seen nothing but spite. She may have secretly harbored hopes that there still might be something there, but no longer. One look into his face and she realized that there never had been anything to salvage. She doubted Saffir was capable of loving anyone aside from Demando.
"I- I had better get going," Petz said as she rose to her feet. "I just stopped by to say hello to Ami-chan," she lied hastily. Saffir just watched her with a stony expression as she hurried to the door, shoved her feet into her shoes and took off.
The room was silent as the three remaining people just sat there. Finally Beruche found her voice. "That really wasn't very nice of you, Saffir-kun," she reprimanded him.
"I didn't do anything," he replied coolly.
"Exactly."
Ami went over to Saffir to check for a temperature. His glare didn't daunt her because she refused to let it. "From what I understand, you're a pretty intelligent man," she said in her calm voice. "I need to check to make sure you don't have a fever from healing- it happens sometimes, especially with those of us who have magic in our nature."
He watched as she placed a clammy hand on his forehead. She's scared of me, he realized, though the idea that his enemies were afraid brought no joy to him. It brought no feeling. It seems I've gone into post-traumatic stress, he thought clinically. Having the very foundation of your world ripped out from underneath you must do that to a person.
"No fever," she pronounced, then scurried back to the safety of the loveseat.
"I brought something for you as a get-well present," Beruche announced to Saffir. He arched an eyebrow inquisitively as she handed him the box she had carried in. "I know you already have one, Ami-chan, but this made me think of Saffir-kun."
Saffir wasn't quite sure what to make of what was happening. A get-well present? Must be some kind of Earth custom he hadn't heard of. He took the box Beruche shoved cheerfully at him and opened it slowly, careful not to tear the paper in which it was wrapped. Neatness, order....
Inside was the most beautiful set of chess pieces he had ever seen. They were made up of a beautiful stone and each were carved into the traditional shapes- Saffir was a purist and Beruche had apparently remembered that. The white pieces each glinted in the room's light. Rather then black, though, the opposite color was a rich blue that matched his hair. He couldn't object to that change. He picked one up and looked at it with a speculative eye.
"You play?" Ami asked, the words forced from her.
Saffir nodded and Beruche giggled. "Who do you think taught me?" she asked.
"He did?" she asked, amazed.
"I did NOT teach her to cheat, though," he responded, on the defensive for the first time in Ami's presence.
"You're too rigid to ever want to," Beruche retaliated.
"Chess is an ancient game that deserves respect. I wouldn't want to cheat- I can beat anyone on my own merits. Besides, if I DID cheat, I wouldn't do it in a manner that I could get caught, unlike a certain someone I could name," Saffir said.
Ami wasn't sure she was able to take this in- Saffir was in prime form, sarcastic as anything. He didn't seem to be reacting to his brother's abandonment of him in the fashion that was to be expected.
"You don't need to cheat. When was the last time you lost a game?" Beruche demanded. "When you were five?" Her pale eyes lit up as she suggested, "Why don't you play Ami-chan. She's an excellent player." Then she made a pretense of looking at the clock. "I had better get going," she said, taking her leave of them with much more style then her older sister had.
Ami looked at Saffir and knew how well they had been set up. Beruche apparently had an agenda of her own, making sure that Saffir and Ami got along.
Saffir shrugged and slid out of the bed, wincing. His hands started to shakily set up the board.
"You really shouldn't be out of bed," Ami said hesitantly.
"My wounds are going to take a few days to heal enough for me to do anything about the current situation," he informed her. "If I just lie there, I'll go stark raving mad. Are you going to play?" he asked rather testily.
She smiled and took the white pieces. "This is a top-quality set!" she exclaimed as she felt how heavy the piece was and examined the detail on it.
"Nothing but the best for the Ayakashi sisters. Apparently some things don't change," he said, his voice full of something Ami couldn't identify readily. Could it be sadness? she wondered.
She moved out a pawn and waited for him to return her attack. He studied the board with a practice eye, and Ami felt goosebumps across her back. Saffir acted as a professional, rather then a casual player. He surveyed his options carefully before responding with a pawn, mirroring her opening.
Interesting choice, she thought as she considered the possibilities. "But some things do," Ami said, bringing one of her knights into play.
His face was expressionless as he shifted his queen forward, challenging Ami's defense. "But we don't have to accept that."
Ami was well aware of the multi-level game they were playing. "Perhaps," she replied mysteriously. She looked at the clock, gauging the time. "The rest of the Senshi will be out of school in a few hours," she informed him, moving her rook.
He took a pawn in response. "Shouldn't you be there as well?"
She captured a knight. "Yes, but you needed someone to look after you, and I decided I could afford to miss a few days of classes." She gestured towards the stack of books sitting on one of the end tables. "Besides, I usually learn more from books then from classes."
He spared her heavy pile a looked before taking another of her pawns. "I'm not surprised. I always found it trying to be in a group when learning- too many people to hold me back. You know, even in the future, Sailor Mercury is considered the most intelligent of the Senshi."
She blushed slightly, aware of his implied compliment. "Please don't tell me anything about the future. I prefer to think we make our own destiny." She moved one of her white pawns towards a bishop, hoping he would fall for her trap.
He didn't the bait. "Time is a fixed object. Ask Sailor Pluto- she watches it to protect what MUST happen. We merely exist within it, playing our destined parts," Saffir replied in a voice as cool as ice.
Ami disagreed with him. "Then what's the point of living?" she asked, finally bringing our her Queen to capture another of his pawns.
"Why play a game? You already know the outcome- someone will win, someone will lose, or there will be a tie," he stated. "You play for the fun of it." He pushed his Queen forward, grabbing a rook.
Ami's eyes flashed as she noticed his mistake. The Queen was now in range of her knight, and she could take it. Her nimble fingers followed through, satisfied that this was still something she could do well. Without his Queen, Saffir was at a major disadvantage.
A faint smile touched his lips, a smile that sent shivers down her spine. He moved a bishop, and the lay of the entire game changed. Her eyes widened as she realized that Saffir must have been planning this from the very beginning, and she, like a child, had walked right into it. He looked deeply into her eyes, and she was suddenly even more aware of the Black Moon on his forehead. "The Queen Sacrifice," he said softly.
"Checkmate."
***
"Virgos exude a feeling of peace and love- as a result, they have good relationships with others."
***
"Are you ok, love?"
Petz looked over her desk at her sisters Calaveras. Her eyes were soft and quiet, so different then they had been when she had been a servant of Rubeus. The sisters had grown very close since their healings.
"I will be," Petz answered, deciding to give up the pretense of doing paperwork.
The red-head came around and knelt down beside her older sister. "Do you want to tell me what happened?" Calaveras asked, taking Petz's cold hand in her own.
Petz smiled sadly. "Saffir-sama hasn't changed at all," she said as though that was enough.
It was indeed enough for Calaveras. Saffir was bitter and biting, extremely brilliant and frightening. She had never understood how Petz could love such a man, yet every now and then Saffir would blaze with a passion that was entrancing. True passion was rare on Nemesis. "And you still love him," she said softly.
"I suppose I always will. He holds part of my heart, whether he wants to or not." Petz's eyes glittered with unshed tears.
"Saffir is an idiot- he doesn't realize what a treasure he holds," Calaveras said angrily.
The idea of Saffir not being brilliant forced a laugh from Petz. "No, Calaveras. It is not his fault. He simply was never allowed to learn to love anyone but Demando-sama." She squeezed Calaveras' hand reassuringly. "In a way, I'm glad I saw him. Saffir was my last link to the Black Moon Family. Now that that tie is severed, I have closure on that chapter of my life. I can move forward with no more regrets."
Petz stood up, taking Calaveras with her. "Let's close shop a little early today and do some shopping. I could use a new outfit. I have a date this Saturday," Petz said.
Calaveras followed her sister out of the room, sure that Petz would be ok. The last part of her healing had finally begun.
***
ELEMENTS: Earth and Water.
***
The Wiseman's hands curled around the globe, summoning the energies of his master, the Death Phantom. Beside him sat Black Lady, who was twirling a white rose between her fingers with a rather thoughtful look on her striking face. Every now and then she looked up at the creature that had led her down such a dark path, her expression thoughtful.
Dark power enveloped her in a thick haze of hatred, yet the simple rose was more fascinating to her then the possibility of world destruction. Why had Tuxedo Mask bothered to give it to her? His roses were made up of his very essence, and by giving it to her, he had given up some of himself.
The Wiseman, though, wasn't overly concerned with her distraction. Things were going much better then he had originally planned. Saffir, Demando's irritating younger brother, was finally out of the picture. True, the Wiseman would have preferred to have him killed (death was a much cleaner solutions to life's little "problems"), but perhaps things had worked out for the best. Rubeus and Esmeraude were gone as well; that left him as the White Prince's only trusted confident. As long as Demando continued to believe Saffir had betrayed him (the very idea of it amused the Wiseman, who had seen the hero-worship in Saffir's face too many times to count), he would not take anyone into his inner circle. The stage was set; all that remained was for the Death Phantom to make his entrance.
Saffir's theft of the Crystal Key Card made things more difficult then the Wiseman would have liked, but hunting it down would have been futile. The Wiseman, no slouched with the jakozuishou himself, had to redesign the command center to by-pass the need for the Card. It lacked efficiency, and no more power could be added, but there was enough power in there already as long as he used in carefully... all the Crystal had to do was cycle a few more times.....
"It is strange, is it not, Black Lady, that the House of the Black Moon all hinged on the love of brothers?" he mused aloud.
She nodded, agreeing with her Master completely. "The House was doomed to fall anyway. Saffir was a weakling," she said.
The Wiseman's eyes flared with the light that meant he was incensed or impassioned. "No. Saffir is stronger then Demando- our Prince has a fatal flaw that I will be able to exploit. Without his younger brother's protection, Nemesis will fall that much quicker."
The derisive snort that greeted his words showed Black Lady's opinion of that. "Saffir never left the jakozuishou or his study long enough to be any problem."
"He was the brains- Demando was the beauty. If the Prince had listened to Saffir, perhaps this battle would have been more difficult. Or if Saffir had been the Prince- now HE would have been a worthy foe." The Wiseman's hands stilled for a second as he considered that might-have-been before resuming their swirling motions. "It is no matter. By now he has been suitably disposed of- either one of the Senshi killed him, or he died of the injuries you gave him."
Black Lady wanted to disagree about Saffir's fate, but decided it wasn't worth her time. She continued to fiddle with the rose, trying to figure out the puzzle that had been offered to her by Sailor Moon's lover. Could this be the same man who would later become her father?
"How much longer until the jakozuishou will be ready?" Black Lady asked.
"Three days," the Wiseman replied. "Three days until we open the Dark Gate."
***
"Hard workers and conscientious, Virgos are perfectionists with little tolerance for shoddy work. There is no place in their world for people who are footloose and fancy free."
***
The final bell rang, and the students were set free from the imprisoning school-building. Usually one Tsukino Usagi would be at the head of the rush (unless a certain infamous phenomenon know as detention reared its ugly head), but today, she rose quietly from her desk.
Gathering her books to her chest protectively against her chest, she started to move slowly towards the doorway, her eyes on her scuffed shoes. Haruna-sensei watched as the girl left, wondering exactly when the world had started to fall apart.
Usagi's body language spoke of utter hopelessness. Rather then bounce along the way she did usually, she walked at a sedate place that would have had her mother checking for a fever. She slumped along, and even her ponytails seemed to be drooping.
She looked up at the sky, wondering where Chibi-Usa was. She carefully averted her gaze from the Dark Crystal, wondering why the rest of the world kept spinning when things should skid to a halt. Didn't anyone understand how much danger they all were in? she wondered. People were still going to work, going to school and caring on as usual when they should be celebrating what could be the last days of their lives. Perhaps they all expect the Senshi to save them again with some miracle, she thought sadly. The problem is the Senshi may have run out of miracles to go round.
A shriek interrupted her uncharacteristically serious thoughts. "Usagi-chan!" Minako hollered as she coasted to a stop. "We should be heading over to Ami's."
Usagi frowned, looking around for Artemis. He wasn't in Minako's basket or on her shoulder, his two customary places. "Where's Artemis?" she asked.
"And they call ME an airhead," Minako muttered in a somewhat offended tone. "He's at Ami's- remember? There's a member of the Black Moon Family there?"
"Gomen nasai," Usagi replied. "I was thinking about other things. Are Makoto and Rei going there as well?" she asked.
Minako sighed. Even though Usagi actually had a reason for being out of it (not that she usually needed one), it was frustrating to deal with her. "Yes, Usagi-chan. They're already on there way- Mako-chan went to pick up Luna, so that's why they sent me to remind you."
The former Sailor V grabbed Usagi's wrist and started to pull her along at rapid pace. "Slow down, Minako-chan!" Usagi protested. "I have all my books!"
Minako dropped her friend's hand and smiled guilty. "Gomen ne," she said.
Usagi looked at the Venus Senshi and then her eyes narrowed. "You're in an awfully big hurry, aren't you? Is something wrong?"
Minako's eyes were somber as she looked at her princess. "It's... it's nothing," she said finally.
This time it was Usagi who was doing the grabbing. Her eyes were steady as she held onto Minako's shoulder firmly. "What's wrong," she said, making it a command to be answered. Every now and then, flashes of the princess Usagi had been would come through.
Minako always had to resist the urge to genuflect when Usagi spoke like that. "I do not want to leave Saffir-san and Ami-chan alone... I got the strangest feeling that if we're not careful, something could happen."
"Like what?" Usagi asked.
"I am the Senshi of Love, and when I look at those two, I see the possibility of romance between them," the Venus Senshi admitted, hating to put another burden on Usagi's already overloaded shoulders.
"There's that possibility for everyone," Usagi said, not getting the point.
"Not like this- a soul consuming relationship, where only the other partner matters," Minako said worriedly, trying to find the words to articulate her concerns and fears.
"Like me and Mamo-chan?" Usagi asked, trying to put it into terms she understood.
"Exactly- but Saffir-san is a member of the Black Moon Family. With him and Ami-chan, it would be a constant struggle for dominance- and I can just see her giving into whatever he wanted to keep him happy. She's very traditional when it comes to serious things like marriage."
Usagi chewed on her lip, trying to find it in herself to argue on Ami's behalf, but had to concede that Minako was right. "Are you sure?" she asked. "I mean, you've only seen them together once. You could be wrong."
"I hope I am," Minako said softly.
Usagi was about to reply, but then she heard a distant clock chime, reminding her of the time. Her eyes widened in horror. "We're so LATE!" she said, beginning one of her famous I'm-so-late-why-can't-I-ever-win sprints towards Ami's apartment complex.
Minako followed hot on her heels, no stranger to being late herself. The strange thing about dealing with Usagi, Minako thought as they rounded a corner, careening wildly over the sidewalks, is that I think she suffers from multiple personality syndrome. Just when she's finally acting like a leader, she goes back into her childishness.
The two blondes ran as quickly as they could, Usagi momentarily forgetting her depression. Their feet pounded as they finally reached their destination. Climbing into the elevator, the dangerous duo impatiently waited for it to deliver them to Ami's floor. Taking a sideways glance, they pulled out their henshin jewelry and changed, determined to keep their identities secret from Saffir as long as possible. Every advantage they could find might help.
Together, the blonde bombshells barged into her home, not even bothering to take off their shoes as was customary. They skidded to a stop as they took in what was happening.
Surprisingly, they were the first to arrive. Saffir was awake and sitting on the floor, staring at a chess board. Ami sat on the opposite side of the table, a small smile playing on her usually somber face. The pair looked up and returned their attention to the game.
"Hello. Mars-chan called and said she'd be a little late- something came up with another student and she had to stay. Jupiter-chan should be here any minute. Help yourself to whatever's in the fridge," Ami said absentmindedly, not really paying attention to her close friends. Her formidable intellect was concentrated on the game in front of her. Saffir had beat her three times our of every four, and she wanted to finish their little chess marathon on a win. Saffir seemed equally determined that she not defeat him again.
Ami had defeated Beruche's teacher twice, to his astonishment. The look on his face when she manavered him into that first checkmate had been priceless- for once, rather then an enemy, he had looked like an overly cocky young man who had just been handed his confidence back on a platter. It was satisfying for her to challenge him- so few could challenge her mentally, and she was painfully aware of how poor her fighting skills were. An equal.....
The two others hurried into the kitchen to bring out food, Usagi carrying what would have been a three-course meal for most people, proclaiming it as a light snack. Saffir watched Sailor Moon while pretending to concentrate on the chess game. Of all the people in any world, or any time for that matter, this was the person he despised most. Without her, the Wiseman would never have been able to get his claws into Demando. The blonde sat down in a chair and proceeded to stuff her face in a graceless fashion, and Saffir felt the antipathy flair like a fire that had had gasoline thrown on it. His brother risked everything for this creature?
Usagi was blissfully unaware of the man's hatred, concentrating on her soda. Food had always been a refuge for her, when people said she was too stupid, or when something was wrong in her life. She was slurping the last bit down when the door burst open, admitting a worried Sailor Mars. She, too, took in Ami and Saffir's preoccupation with an unusual amount of interest.
"Jupiter's still not here?!" she exclaimed in a concern voice.
"She went to get Luna," Venus exclaimed, looking up from the fashion magazine she was browsing through. The Senshi of Beauty clicked her teeth derisively, wondering who had decided Meiou Setsuna knew anything about fashion. That woman's stuck back in the seventies....
Mars just sat down on the floor, shaking her head. Any press photographer would give their eye teeth to be able to see this scene- the Sailor Senshi hanging out in full uniform. Scowling fiercely, Sailor Mars understood that nothing would get done until Luna arrived- but she didn't have to like it. She decided that she'd spend the time making more ofuda... she had the feeling she might be needed them soon. A small part of her was tempted to hit Saffir right where his moon was and watch what happened. Bet that would distract him, she thought with malicious amusement as she prepared the calligraphy pens she'd taken from Ami's desk. She managed to quell the impulse.... barely.
"Checkmate!" Ami announced gleefully, the sudden sound breaking through the quiet room. "Got you this time, Saffir-san!"
He tilted his head, managing to look boyishly charming without meaning to. He studied the board, looking for some escape, but found none. "Hai. But that's only the third time you've won. I've defeated you ten games out of thirteen."
This of course, set all of the Senshi even further on edge. They had always believed that Ami was the most brilliant person they had ever known, and had relied on this for them to defeat their enemies. The news that she had lost so many times at chess -one of her strongest talents- was enough to make Saffir go from "dangerous commodity" to "dangerous intelligent enemy".
Sailor Jupiter walked into this minefield, unaware that one misstep would set off the explosives. She dropped Luna onto the floor casually, then plopped onto a chair, stretching her long legs. "We all ready?" she asked.
Decision time. Usagi looked around and saw the dislike on Rei's and Minako's expressions, Ami's somewhat distracted manner, Saffir's coolness and Makoto's confusion. "Yes. Saffir-san, tell us what you know of the jakozuishou," she commanded.
His eyes flashed brilliantly. "I will not betray my people," he said softly.
"Even though they tried to kill you?" Rei demanded, not understanding how he could possibly forgive him.
"It wasn't their fault!" he protested angrily. Then he flushed, the warm color highlighting his strong cheekbones.
"Oh? How about Esmeraude? And Rubeus? I could easily see either of them trying to kill their own mother, let alone you!" Mars snapped.
"They weren't always like that," he whispered, a subconcious hand touching his ear which lacked the charecteristic black crystal earring worn by every other member of the Black Moon Family.
Ami picked his hand up, leaning over the chess board, scattering a few of the pieces carelessly. "Saffir-san, you must tell us what happened. If you ever want to see Demando-sama free from the Wiseman, we must know!"
Kind blue eyes clashed with glacial ones, Ami holding firm until she saw cracks in his facade. "But you're the enemy...." he whispered.
"There's a saying, I think it's Middle Eastern... 'The enemy of my enemy is my friend,'" Ami informed him. "Trust us, Saffir-san," she said, squeezing his hand gently.
Intellectually, Saffir realized that he was unable to justifying betraying everything he had learned since birth, yet if it saved Demando-sama... "The Wiseman isn't really a part of the Black Moon Family."
"We guessed that," Jupiter said, irony lacing her words. The Senshi, in spite of themselves, had shifted to a more recepetive posture, sensing that Saffir was going to spill.
He shut his eyes, trying to decide exactly where to begin his story.