Arg! Why is this messing up chapter order? Stupid Frontpage; stupid inernet; stupid fanfiction; stupid laptop! *Suki throws her laptop to the floor in irritation* Ah! No! What have I done?!
Chapter 11
When Esmeraude had strode over and slapped Serenity across the face, Calaveras and Petz jumped her, holding her back and preventing her from ripping the poor princess to shreds, while Beruche and Cooan surrounded the girl defensively. Saffir had gone after his brother. Rubeus shook his head and all but ignored the commotion.
"Esmeraude is going to murder you," he said matter-of-factly.
Serenity held her stinging face and ran away, spurring through the halls on light feet, slamming her bedroom door behind her and leaning against the wooden structure, heart pacing. She clenched at her chest in an attempt to still her quickly beating heart.
How could this have happened? Saffir tricked her! They all did. And Demando had not tried to stop them. She was outraged.
She tried to calm herself. It was silly. Just because she had performed some Nemesian ritual did not now mean that she was married to Demando. Besides, she told herself, only she had spoken the vow.
Princess Serenity did not know that Nemeisan law required only one partner to speak the vow for the marriage to be valid. Their logic was that if the other party was present and had willing bound his or herself to the partner with the ceremonial ribbon that it was enough to assume the promise was mutual.
It wouldn't have mattered. Serenity had not consented, and as far as she was concerned, she remained unmarried.
* * *
Demando paced the walled garden furiously. Saffir was sitting on a stone bench watching him.
"Look Onii-chan, you wanted her, I got her for you."
"That's not at all what I had intended," Demando hissed.
"You hadn't intended to wed her?"
"No! Well yes, but not like that . . . it's wrong, Saffir. She didn't know what was happening." She was so trusting, so naive.
"So? You could have stopped it, and you didn't." Wrong thing to say.
"You don't think I know that?!" The deadly anger that always dwelled beneath the passive surface threatened to overflow. Then Demando stilled and inhaled deeply, closing his eyes with wearily. "I'm sorry. No, it's not your fault. It is my fault."
"What are you going to do?" he asked the older brother quietly.
"I'm going to dismiss it. It never happened."
* * *
Esmeraude was punished for attacking Serenity by a two-week long banishment and severely warned never to touch or speak harshly to her again upon pain of permanent exile.
Serenity would not speak to the three Ayakashi sisters for four days. Cooan was the only one who avoided her wrath.
"Stop it, Serenity-hime, you're being like Calaveras," Beruche touched her shoulders from behind, trying to persuade her.
Serenity shrugged off her hands and made no answer.
"You've got nothing to be angry about now. Prince Demando said the ritual was void."
"It doesn't matter! You all tricked me!" She was hurt and angry.
"I'm sorry; we all are. We didn't think it would be so bad. You were getting along with him and – and you've got to give into him someday! This is your new home now! This is where you belong!"
"That's not for anyone to decide for me! I never asked to be brought here, and I don't want Prince Demando." She cringed at her own cruelty.
"That's harsh, Serenity-hime."
She knew it was true, but was passionate. "Maybe so, but at least I respect the wishes of others and would never try to force someone to do anything against his or her will. The Lunarians would never do something like that."
Beruche caught the round-about insult and shook her head. Her voice lowered, "You don't know anything."
"I beg your pardon?" Serenity was shocked and emotionally wounded. She knew that she didn't know much, but to say she didn't know anything at all was just cruel. At least what the princess inferred about the Nemesians' disregard of other's wishes had been accurate.
"It's true. They told Prince Demando the night he stole you that he could never see you again; ever."
Serenity furrowed her eyebrows, her pretty features twisted miserably. "Who – who told him that?"
"The Queen and that precious prince of yours."
Serenity felt sick. "You're telling me the truth?"
"I swear," Beruche softened her tone and looked at the Princess sadly. "Saffir told Petz. He heard it from the Prince directly."
Serenity fell back into a chair, her thoughts churning like the yellow clouds of Nemesis. How could they do such a thing without even asking her? Her family, her friends – what had happened to them? Did they think she had left with the prince willingly? Had they forsaken her?
Tears leaked through her eyes without a sound. Beruche came to her and stroked her hair, a surrogate mother.
"Oh, Beruche. I miss my family so much."
* * *
The Princess forgave the sisters and Saffir for deceiving her. After all, they were loyal to their prince, and were just doing what they thought was best for him. It would be wrong for Serenity not to forgive them for attempting to force her when she did not condemn her own loved ones for doing the same thing to Prince Demando. And what Beruche had said was true – Serenity did get along better with Demando now.
But even though the Prince disregarded the false wedding, the incident somehow leaked out, and the Nemesians behaved as though she had finally become their queen. Sometimes, when Serenity and Demando ate together, or walked together, or did some other such activity, people would stare and point, beaming proudly at what they were convinced were husband and wife. When that occurred, the Princess would flush red, but the stoic man made no sign that he had noticed.
* * *
"A pomegranate," she informed him, slicing the fruit open with a large knife, struggling a little. They were sitting out on the stone floor balcony with a small, low table, although the air was more frigid then ever. The princess loved the light and openness of the outdoors. "I saved them from autumn time. You have a tree in the walled garden. Didn't you know?"
"I had forgotten." He moved the knife out of her hand, nervous at she sawed dangerously close to her fingers, and resumed cutting. He started to scoop out the seeds.
"Oh no, no, don't do that! The seeds are good too." She caught one and popped it in her mouth.
He raised a moon-white eyebrow at the young woman. With a perfectly straight face he informed her, "You're odd."
"I'm sorry . . . was that you doing your best to tease me?" she said playfully, beaming. Her laughter was musical like the melody from the silver box, only happy, not haunting.
Demando settled back with his back against the wall, content. If she wouldn't be his wife, this was the next best thing. He lifted a piece of the juicy fruit to his mouth and ate it.
"Share," Serenity pouted, holding out her hands like a greedy child.
He started to cut the pomegranate again, but she said peevishly, "I can do it without hurting myself." He gave the knife and fruit back to her so that she could cut a piece for herself. Other than forcing the poor girl into captivity, he was by no means controlling.
"My friends and I used to eat pomegranates; closer to summer, when they were just beginning to ripen, but still hard; right before the coming of winter . . ." she trailed off, nostalgia and longing mingling over her lovely face.
Demando felt painfully guilty. So she was lonely for her old friends. It was understandable. But for her to see them again, he would have to let her go back, and to do that would have caused him many more unbearable emotions; if she left him, she might never wish to come back. And they probably wouldn't let her, even if she wanted to.
He knew that she was often sad, that she cried to the Ayakashi sisters because her Mother didn't come for her. Keeping his secret from her, that the delay of her loved ones was his doing, was weighing him down. He wanted to tell her, but could not. He knew when he did, she would demand he drop down the force fields and let her Prince Endymion come to get her. He could deny her, and that was awful enough, or he could do what she asked of him. And when Endymion did arrive, oh Kami – she would go away with him and out of Demando's life forever.
The silence was heavy with unspoken words. Neither side would give way. They could never come to a compromise, he and his un-wife.
* * *
The sixth month.
The sleeping evil in the Earth stirred. It rose up like a wave and crashed upon the unsuspecting kingdom, leaving nothing but ruins in its wake.
By the time the news reached the Moon, half of the planet had fallen to the Sorceress Beryl. It was not only her strength in numbers (though the amount of people she had twisted and turned to the side of evil was frightening) but the surge of pure malicious energy that lent itself to her cause that made her legions so dangerous. To this malevolent power the sorceress gave a name: Queen Metallia. That dreadful force was so great that those who had once been the bravest of warriors fell down on their faces before the enemy in fear at the onslaught of the dark power.
The entire Solar System went on the defensive. But the Moon Kingdom was still weak, and it was the heart of the Silver Millennium. Secretly, everyone prayed that the conquest stopped at Earth. For if it continued on to the Moon, it was not impossible that it could fall. And with it, so all the planets would be doomed.
In two weeks, the Earth was conquered. Refugees, including the Prince Endymion, fled to the Moon Kingdom and Mars.
No relief came from the Time Guardian.
* * *
Two weeks into the sixth month of her captivity, Saffir and Petz were married. It was what the black ribbon had been intended for the day of Serenity and Demando's un-marriage. It was why Petz had been so silent and brooding that day.
This wedding, unlike the one, was official. It took place in Demando's large throne room which Serenity had never been in before, because the Prince rarely spent time there. It was only for ceremonies such as this one.
It was Demando who had the honor of binding the ribbon round the hands of his brother and his love. A great many people witnessed the event: servants and nobles that lived in the palace, and wealthier guests that came from the outside.
Serenity cried. Everyone looked at her in shock. Afterwards, Demando took her aside and asked carefully if she was all right.
"I'm fine," she said, moist eyes wide as a doe's. "I'm only happy for them, that's all."
"You cry when you're happy?" He looked puzzled as he tried to understand what kind of logic would lead one to cry when happy.
"Yes." She smiled wistfully. "I've always loved weddings, since I was a little girl." She felt comfortable with him, like she could tell him anything. Unfortunately, she was known for speaking without thinking. "It's been my dream to be a wife. When Prince Endymion and I were to be married, we . . ."
Demando averted his gaze to the ground and Serenity was stung with guilt. How could she have been so thoughtless – to say that she longed to be married in the presence of the man who wished to wed her, but whom she denied?
But Demando had run his hand lightly down her back letting her know that he did not hold it against her. Then he left her there to sort through her mixed feelings.
* * *
The forces of Queen Metallia held Earth for merely two weeks. No sooner had their hold been secured, then they lunged for the Moon Kingdom.
"My Queen!" Artemis flew into her bedroom, not bothering to knock. "The enemy has attacked the southern region and is making its way to the capital. We must do something!"
The Queen was sitting at her window, dazed, unseeing. She turned her head slowly. "Set the defenses."
"We have! But it's not enough! I request permission to draft civilians and to call on our alliances with the other planets for aid."
"Permission granted."
"This enemy is strong, Serenity," he said, moving forward, addressing her as the old friend she was. He placed a hand on her shoulder. "Your people need you. They are losing hope. Won't you rally behind them?"
"What more can I do, Artemis? The ginzuishou is pouring its energy into the people's efforts. If all else fails, I will go out there with the jewel myself and sacrifice all the power I have into propelling its force into a full-frontal assault on Metallia. It will kill me, but so be it."
"How can this fearsome power be a match for the ginzuishou?"
"The crystal can only do so much . . . without its wielder."
"The Princess."
"She is Sailormoon. I am only Sailormoon's mother."
"You are the Queen of the Moon."
She smiled grimly. "So I am. I tend to forget and recall only that I am a mother."
"You're not only a mother! You're a queen, and you have a responsibility to defend your kingdom!" Artemis was fed up with being sensitive. He reprimanded her harshly, a well-meaning father figure. "Put this selfishness behind you! This is not the Serenity I know. Do what you must. Dismiss your sorrows. There are other things more important than your own self-pity." He nearly spat out his feelings in frustration.
Her eyebrows rose, her eyes looked far away, and it seemed as if she would cry, shock ingrained in every inch of her features. Then, steeling herself, she rose and turned to Artemis. "Forgive me. I've been wrong. Call forth my advisors and my generals. It is time to summon the Sailor Senshi."
* * *
The Princess's ladies-in-waiting were ecstatic at the announcement. Finally, their Queen was summoning them to battle. They were all too eager to help defend the Silver Millennium.
Princess Neptune and Princess Uranus arrived shortly. When the seven warriors at last joined the battlefield, they dealt a fatal blow to the enemy. Calling on powers old as the universe, these young women could transform into fierce soldiers, each with her own immense, elemental power: Mars for fire, Mercury for water, Jupiter for storm, Neptune for oceans, Uranus for earth. Venus was love, the very embodiment of the adversary of evil. The senshi's entrance for a time brought renewed hope to the people of the solar system.
But the Dark Kingdom was stronger. Slowly, the onset was driven back, and the Lunarians were losing ground. The Queen, from her capital, directed intricate plans and connived strategies, but to no avail.
The Princess Saturn could not fight. Her power was far too great. To wield it would mean death not just for the enemy, but for all.
It was a week into the battle. The Moon Kingdom was losing. The other kingdoms had sent all the help they could without sacrificing their own protection. The fate of the Silver Millennium, and in turn of the whole universe, looked grim.
Then, the Time Guardian appeared.
"Pluto . . ." the Queen murmured.
The eerie beauty with dark green hair smiled bleakly. She was beautiful, terribly beautiful. But it was the kind of grave beauty that made ignorant children tremble in fear. "My Queen," she bowed respectfully. In reality, she was but a mere servant despite the highness of her position. "It is time to bring back Sailormoon."
* * *
Demando was once again torn. An unknown threat had arisen from the bowls of the Earth and driven forward to the Moon Kingdom. He knew that the immense force field generated from the heart of Nemesis would protect the planet for a while. But if this threat conquered the solar system, it would only be a matter of time before the black moon would be discovered. What could he do? Should he attack the unsuspecting Dark Kingdom before it had a chance to attack him, in hopes to catch it off guard and weakened by other adversaries? Or should he wait? And if he did attack and the evil force was conquered, then his guard would be let down. He would have the Moon Kingdom to deal with; and Serenity would know.
Rubeus and Esmeraude were no help. Even his wise little brother was at a loss.
The Princess knew nothing.
One morning she awoke. She felt that something was different. She was drained and yet restless. She now stayed in Petz's old room, since the sister had wed Saffir. Drawing on a warm dress, she padded through the corridors in bare feet. She was at home here. She wanted to look out the windows. She sensed it was a beautiful day.
She came to the wing of the palace that bared itself to the outside. Something was different. The yellow clouds had parted, evaporated. She drew nearer. Something was glowing in the sky, massive, enormous, a silvery light. Her feet moved faster now, her heart quickened its pace. She was running. She threw herself against the glass, face and palms pressed to the window, disbelieving.
There – there taking up one quarter of the Nemesian sky – was the Moon.
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
*stroking her dismembered laptop lovingly* It's okay, baby. Everything's going to be fine . . .
^-^;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;