AN Yeah! Another chapter. And things only get cuter. I like this pairing so much. I think the first half/threequarter of this fic will be very sweet and sappy, and the rest very very tragic, but I can't, and won't, change the ending. Because this isn't alternate universe. Sorry, folks. And I will make them suffer. I have the most horrific ending scene in my head, that will be so torturous, you will cry your eyes out. I'M EVIL!!! Heheh. Never you mind my ranting, just go read the story, if you're still reading this.
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A silver wrapped gift
Chapter 3: Approaching
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Endymion stared into nothingness. It had been a week now since the moon princess had come and gone. A week, and he could still feel her lips on his. Am I in love? No, I can't be, can I? I don't know her. How can I be in love with someone I don't know? He shook his head. This is ridiculous. I am wondering wether I am in love, while I don't really know what being in love feels like. It's official. I am an idiot.
"My lord?"
"Yes, Jadeite."
"You seem a bit distant lately. Is something bothering you?"
Endymion shook his head. "No, you don't have to worry."
The man grinned. "Who said I was worried?"
Endymion laughed. "Well, there is no cause for concern. I am fine."
"Very well, my lord. Oh, before I forget, you seem to have misplaced a cloak. Do you know where it is?"
The cloak he had given to princess Selenity. How could he tell Jadeite it had gone to the moon? He would never believe it. Besides, something inside him told him he shouldn't say anything about the princess. So instead he answered, "No, I don't, maybe it was lost in the laundry or something."
"Oh well, I suppose it'll surface. I will leave you to your reflections now, my lord."
"Thank you, Jadeite."
He left, leaving the prince to his own thoughts.
Those thoughts immediately wandered back to the princess. He couldn't help smiling when he thought back how she had appeared before him again, completely drenched, but with a sparkle in her eyes he had never seen before. Her face appeared before his mind's eye. Everything about her was just perfect, from the color of her eyes to the dimple in her chin when she smiled. The crescent symbol, unseen here on Earth, looked completely natural on her.
He put a hand over his mouth. He had met dozens of girls so why was she so solidly lodged in his head? What was so special about her, that he just couldn't put her out of his mind? He looked up through the window into the night sky. The waning moon spread its dull, silver light. Somewhere on that cold piece of rock, the royal palace stood. And somewhere in that palace dwelled princess Selenity.
Or maybe she was on Earth again. She did like the planet very much and wanted to see all of it. I hope she'll come back here. I want to see her again, talk to her. She is as curious about Earth as I am about the moon. We could trade knowledge. He leaned against the cold glass. As much as he tried to suppress the thought, it wasn't the real reason for wanting to see her again. He raised his hand and trailed the window-frame. He wanted to see her again just because he wanted to see her again. It was stupid. He banged his fist against the glass. She was the princess of the moon. She would not return to Earth just to do him a favor. And he had told her to keep the cloak, so she wouldn't come back to return it, either.
Enough was enough. He had to stop this mental torture. Time to shift his attention to real matters. Irritably he turned away from the window. Unfortunately his thoughts did not turn as easily. He wandered around without thinking and soon found himself in the garden. He sighed exasperated. Apparently he had silently hoped for her to be there, as he had done every day last week. He strolled along the dark lanes, despite his rationality searching for the white figure of the princess.
He did not expect to see her, so when he saw her kneeling next to a blue hydrangea, he froze. She looked exactly as he remembered her, except off course, she wasn't drenched now. Her long hair, tied in two buns on top of her head and falling down in two tails from there, shone silver in the moonlight. Her dress was as white as ever. He watched her as her finger softly stroked a flower of the hydrangea.
When she looked up and discovered him, her smile widened into a laugh. She got up. He noticed his cloak was hanging over her arm. She walked up to him and handed it over.
"I thought I should bring it back. Thank you very much for letting me borrow it."
He bowed his head. "Your welcome, princess."
"Listen, I hear that 'princess' all day long. We are equal, are we not? You are the prince of the Earth, and I am the princess of the Moon. Why can't we... why can't we just be friends, on equal basis?"
At first he was too perplexed to answer. Finally he managed to say, "But we're not. We are not exactly equal, now are we?"
She placed her fists on her hips. "I don't see why not? I don't know what you do all day, but I only get trained to be a princess and some day, far away into the future, a queen. I have as much power as a... chambermaid. Less. I have to account for everything I do. I need permission for practically everything. I can't even lift a fork without asking. So what makes you think I stand above you?"
"You do have a point there. But... but still... I can't just neglect the fact that you at least one day will be so much above me."
Impatiently she tossed her head. "I know that, but that could be a thousand years from now. That day is very far away from this day. So please, do not make me be a princess today."
What do you do when a princess asks you not to recognize her authority over you? I guess you have no choice but to oblige. He nodded. "As you wish, Se... Selenity." He tasted the name on his lips. Somehow it did not feel so wrong, calling her by her name.
She smiled again. "See, that wasn't too hard."
And he would do anything to make her smile, he realized.
"I wanted to ask you something," she drew hem back to reality.
"What is it? Maybe I know the answer, maybe not, but I can try."
"This way." She grabbed his hand and led him through the garden. She stopped in the middle of a nonspecific lane. "This plant. It smells good. What's it called?"
"That's lavender. It spreads its scent with its flowers. If you rub them between your fingers, you release the smell."
"Lavender. Funny name." She crouched down next to the plant and picked a flower. As he had said she squished it between her fingers and immediately the lavender scent in the air intensified.
"That does smell good," she commented. "Oh, and there was something else. This way."
Again she led him along paths and lanes. Her curiosity seemed endless. They stopped at laburnum, a patch of marigold, and she surprised him by claiming she had never heard of daisies. She was also amazed by the fact that from the tiny apple blossoms, large round fruit would grow. And she loved the strawberries that were now nice and ripe.
"Do you have more fruit growing in this garden?" she asked with her mouth full.
"Well, yes. There are the apple trees we past earlier. And at the beginning of fall lots of raspberries, blackberries and black- and redcurrants."
"Hm. Fall? What fall? Who falls?"
He frowned. "You know, fall. The season between summer and winter?"
"What's a season?"
He ran his hand through his hair. "This will be difficult to explain. I suppose you have climate control on the moon?"
She nodded. "Yes, at night the temperature drops a little."
"Yes, well, here too, because the sun is gone during the night. The sun warms this planet, because the atmosphere holds the heat. It reflects the heat reflecting from the Earth surface partly back down. The seasons are the result of how the Earth revolves around the sun. You see, the line between the Earth center and the sun's center, and the Earth's equator are not parallel. So during the year it takes the Earth to revolve around the sun, the days on the Earth shorten and lengthen again. This means that in winter, the sun does not have enough time to warm the part of the Earth you're on enough for a pleasant temperature. And during the summer, the days are so long, it can get really hot. During the summer the sun also stands higher in the sky. During winter it stays closer to the horizon."
She wrinkled her forehead in thought. "So the blooming of flowers and the growing of fruit depends on the temperature of the Earth and the atmosphere and therefor on the season. So in a different season, this garden would look different."
"Yes." He sat down on the ground next to her and picked a strawberry. "During fall the trees lose their leaves to preserve their energy for the winter. And in the spring they grow new leaves. Right now it's early summer. We haven't seen the longest day yet. So any other berries will have to ripen for about a month and a half before they're eatable."
She nodded without saying anything. She seemed deep in thought, so he decided not to say anything further, to just let this sink in for a while. Strange there are no seasons on the moon. But I suppose that if you don't know seasons, you think it's strange having them. He picked another strawberry and enjoyed the sweet taste of it.
"But if the trees lose their leaves," she caught his attention again, "doesn't the garden look... I don't know... bald?"
"Yes, for a while, until the snow falls. Then it's sparkling white."
"Snow?"
He smiled. "Yes you wouldn't know about that either. It's like... It's fluffy frozen water falling from the sky."
She looked at him incredulously and began to laugh.
He scratched his head. "I suppose that came out a bit wrong. Do you know the basic chemical principles of water in its three states?"
"Yes," she answered. "They were droned in by Mercury. Vapor, the molecules are not attracted to each other; liquid, the molecules are loosely jumbled together; ice, the molecules are crystalized together."
"Right, well in a snowflake the molecules are crystalized together, but at a greater distance than in ice, so there is more air, hence the flake is fluffed."
She laughed. "I think that really is something I would have to see with my own eyes."
"But... you already have."
"Really?"
"Yes, didn't you tell me you've been to the South Pole? The white on the ground is snow."
"Oh, that's what it was! That was funny stuff, but now I understand your description of fluffiness. I see, so that falls from the sky? From clouds, like rain?"
He nodded. "Yes, when it's cold enough. Sometimes ice comes down, hail. Like ice cubes, except that those are made natural."
"The Earth really is full of wonders." She rubbed her eyes and hid a yawn.
"Are you tired?"
"Yes, our times are not entirely synchronized. Back home it's about past midnight."
"Maybe you should go back, and get some sleep." What am I saying? I want her to stay! But he knew he had no right to keep her here.
"Are you that eager to have me gone?" She frowned threateningly.
He raised his hands in defense. "No, not at all. I like talking to you, but if you fall asleep, we can't talk."
"I suppose you're right. I had better go then." She got up "I hope I'll see you again."
He followed her example. "So do I." She looked up at him. He lost himself in those clear blue eyes. His heart raced when she raised her hand and touched his face.
"You know," she whispered, "I have this strange feeling. I don't want this night to end. Can't I just stay here?"
"For as long as you like," he answered, stroking a strand of hair out of her face. It fell back.
"That never holds," she smiled. Then she frowned worriedly. "Was I out of bounds the other day, to just give you a... a kiss?" She blushed.
"I wouldn't know. I am not all that familiar with the finer elements of society." He grinned almost mischievously.
She laughed. "I really said that, didn't I. What was I thinking? I am far more civilized then you can ever hope to be."
"But, my lady! I am not uncivilized, I simply speak my mind. That is not a sign of ill-breeding..."
"No, it's a sign of honesty. So do tell me, was I out of bounds in your eyes?" She looked sincere again.
He took a deep breath. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. I have to know wether I really am in love. "If you were out of bounds then, I am now as well." He cupped her face in his hands and kissed her. To his joy and relief she didn't struggle. They kissed each other under the waning moon, both suppressing the thought, that what they were doing, would very likely not be allowed by the people home.
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AN Wow, I think that is about the longest scene I've ever written, next to chapter 10 of Under Pressure, my Gundam Wing fic currently running. I hope you all enjoyed that. I sure did. I know, I'm weird. Maybe not.
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A silver wrapped gift
Chapter 3: Approaching
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Endymion stared into nothingness. It had been a week now since the moon princess had come and gone. A week, and he could still feel her lips on his. Am I in love? No, I can't be, can I? I don't know her. How can I be in love with someone I don't know? He shook his head. This is ridiculous. I am wondering wether I am in love, while I don't really know what being in love feels like. It's official. I am an idiot.
"My lord?"
"Yes, Jadeite."
"You seem a bit distant lately. Is something bothering you?"
Endymion shook his head. "No, you don't have to worry."
The man grinned. "Who said I was worried?"
Endymion laughed. "Well, there is no cause for concern. I am fine."
"Very well, my lord. Oh, before I forget, you seem to have misplaced a cloak. Do you know where it is?"
The cloak he had given to princess Selenity. How could he tell Jadeite it had gone to the moon? He would never believe it. Besides, something inside him told him he shouldn't say anything about the princess. So instead he answered, "No, I don't, maybe it was lost in the laundry or something."
"Oh well, I suppose it'll surface. I will leave you to your reflections now, my lord."
"Thank you, Jadeite."
He left, leaving the prince to his own thoughts.
Those thoughts immediately wandered back to the princess. He couldn't help smiling when he thought back how she had appeared before him again, completely drenched, but with a sparkle in her eyes he had never seen before. Her face appeared before his mind's eye. Everything about her was just perfect, from the color of her eyes to the dimple in her chin when she smiled. The crescent symbol, unseen here on Earth, looked completely natural on her.
He put a hand over his mouth. He had met dozens of girls so why was she so solidly lodged in his head? What was so special about her, that he just couldn't put her out of his mind? He looked up through the window into the night sky. The waning moon spread its dull, silver light. Somewhere on that cold piece of rock, the royal palace stood. And somewhere in that palace dwelled princess Selenity.
Or maybe she was on Earth again. She did like the planet very much and wanted to see all of it. I hope she'll come back here. I want to see her again, talk to her. She is as curious about Earth as I am about the moon. We could trade knowledge. He leaned against the cold glass. As much as he tried to suppress the thought, it wasn't the real reason for wanting to see her again. He raised his hand and trailed the window-frame. He wanted to see her again just because he wanted to see her again. It was stupid. He banged his fist against the glass. She was the princess of the moon. She would not return to Earth just to do him a favor. And he had told her to keep the cloak, so she wouldn't come back to return it, either.
Enough was enough. He had to stop this mental torture. Time to shift his attention to real matters. Irritably he turned away from the window. Unfortunately his thoughts did not turn as easily. He wandered around without thinking and soon found himself in the garden. He sighed exasperated. Apparently he had silently hoped for her to be there, as he had done every day last week. He strolled along the dark lanes, despite his rationality searching for the white figure of the princess.
He did not expect to see her, so when he saw her kneeling next to a blue hydrangea, he froze. She looked exactly as he remembered her, except off course, she wasn't drenched now. Her long hair, tied in two buns on top of her head and falling down in two tails from there, shone silver in the moonlight. Her dress was as white as ever. He watched her as her finger softly stroked a flower of the hydrangea.
When she looked up and discovered him, her smile widened into a laugh. She got up. He noticed his cloak was hanging over her arm. She walked up to him and handed it over.
"I thought I should bring it back. Thank you very much for letting me borrow it."
He bowed his head. "Your welcome, princess."
"Listen, I hear that 'princess' all day long. We are equal, are we not? You are the prince of the Earth, and I am the princess of the Moon. Why can't we... why can't we just be friends, on equal basis?"
At first he was too perplexed to answer. Finally he managed to say, "But we're not. We are not exactly equal, now are we?"
She placed her fists on her hips. "I don't see why not? I don't know what you do all day, but I only get trained to be a princess and some day, far away into the future, a queen. I have as much power as a... chambermaid. Less. I have to account for everything I do. I need permission for practically everything. I can't even lift a fork without asking. So what makes you think I stand above you?"
"You do have a point there. But... but still... I can't just neglect the fact that you at least one day will be so much above me."
Impatiently she tossed her head. "I know that, but that could be a thousand years from now. That day is very far away from this day. So please, do not make me be a princess today."
What do you do when a princess asks you not to recognize her authority over you? I guess you have no choice but to oblige. He nodded. "As you wish, Se... Selenity." He tasted the name on his lips. Somehow it did not feel so wrong, calling her by her name.
She smiled again. "See, that wasn't too hard."
And he would do anything to make her smile, he realized.
"I wanted to ask you something," she drew hem back to reality.
"What is it? Maybe I know the answer, maybe not, but I can try."
"This way." She grabbed his hand and led him through the garden. She stopped in the middle of a nonspecific lane. "This plant. It smells good. What's it called?"
"That's lavender. It spreads its scent with its flowers. If you rub them between your fingers, you release the smell."
"Lavender. Funny name." She crouched down next to the plant and picked a flower. As he had said she squished it between her fingers and immediately the lavender scent in the air intensified.
"That does smell good," she commented. "Oh, and there was something else. This way."
Again she led him along paths and lanes. Her curiosity seemed endless. They stopped at laburnum, a patch of marigold, and she surprised him by claiming she had never heard of daisies. She was also amazed by the fact that from the tiny apple blossoms, large round fruit would grow. And she loved the strawberries that were now nice and ripe.
"Do you have more fruit growing in this garden?" she asked with her mouth full.
"Well, yes. There are the apple trees we past earlier. And at the beginning of fall lots of raspberries, blackberries and black- and redcurrants."
"Hm. Fall? What fall? Who falls?"
He frowned. "You know, fall. The season between summer and winter?"
"What's a season?"
He ran his hand through his hair. "This will be difficult to explain. I suppose you have climate control on the moon?"
She nodded. "Yes, at night the temperature drops a little."
"Yes, well, here too, because the sun is gone during the night. The sun warms this planet, because the atmosphere holds the heat. It reflects the heat reflecting from the Earth surface partly back down. The seasons are the result of how the Earth revolves around the sun. You see, the line between the Earth center and the sun's center, and the Earth's equator are not parallel. So during the year it takes the Earth to revolve around the sun, the days on the Earth shorten and lengthen again. This means that in winter, the sun does not have enough time to warm the part of the Earth you're on enough for a pleasant temperature. And during the summer, the days are so long, it can get really hot. During the summer the sun also stands higher in the sky. During winter it stays closer to the horizon."
She wrinkled her forehead in thought. "So the blooming of flowers and the growing of fruit depends on the temperature of the Earth and the atmosphere and therefor on the season. So in a different season, this garden would look different."
"Yes." He sat down on the ground next to her and picked a strawberry. "During fall the trees lose their leaves to preserve their energy for the winter. And in the spring they grow new leaves. Right now it's early summer. We haven't seen the longest day yet. So any other berries will have to ripen for about a month and a half before they're eatable."
She nodded without saying anything. She seemed deep in thought, so he decided not to say anything further, to just let this sink in for a while. Strange there are no seasons on the moon. But I suppose that if you don't know seasons, you think it's strange having them. He picked another strawberry and enjoyed the sweet taste of it.
"But if the trees lose their leaves," she caught his attention again, "doesn't the garden look... I don't know... bald?"
"Yes, for a while, until the snow falls. Then it's sparkling white."
"Snow?"
He smiled. "Yes you wouldn't know about that either. It's like... It's fluffy frozen water falling from the sky."
She looked at him incredulously and began to laugh.
He scratched his head. "I suppose that came out a bit wrong. Do you know the basic chemical principles of water in its three states?"
"Yes," she answered. "They were droned in by Mercury. Vapor, the molecules are not attracted to each other; liquid, the molecules are loosely jumbled together; ice, the molecules are crystalized together."
"Right, well in a snowflake the molecules are crystalized together, but at a greater distance than in ice, so there is more air, hence the flake is fluffed."
She laughed. "I think that really is something I would have to see with my own eyes."
"But... you already have."
"Really?"
"Yes, didn't you tell me you've been to the South Pole? The white on the ground is snow."
"Oh, that's what it was! That was funny stuff, but now I understand your description of fluffiness. I see, so that falls from the sky? From clouds, like rain?"
He nodded. "Yes, when it's cold enough. Sometimes ice comes down, hail. Like ice cubes, except that those are made natural."
"The Earth really is full of wonders." She rubbed her eyes and hid a yawn.
"Are you tired?"
"Yes, our times are not entirely synchronized. Back home it's about past midnight."
"Maybe you should go back, and get some sleep." What am I saying? I want her to stay! But he knew he had no right to keep her here.
"Are you that eager to have me gone?" She frowned threateningly.
He raised his hands in defense. "No, not at all. I like talking to you, but if you fall asleep, we can't talk."
"I suppose you're right. I had better go then." She got up "I hope I'll see you again."
He followed her example. "So do I." She looked up at him. He lost himself in those clear blue eyes. His heart raced when she raised her hand and touched his face.
"You know," she whispered, "I have this strange feeling. I don't want this night to end. Can't I just stay here?"
"For as long as you like," he answered, stroking a strand of hair out of her face. It fell back.
"That never holds," she smiled. Then she frowned worriedly. "Was I out of bounds the other day, to just give you a... a kiss?" She blushed.
"I wouldn't know. I am not all that familiar with the finer elements of society." He grinned almost mischievously.
She laughed. "I really said that, didn't I. What was I thinking? I am far more civilized then you can ever hope to be."
"But, my lady! I am not uncivilized, I simply speak my mind. That is not a sign of ill-breeding..."
"No, it's a sign of honesty. So do tell me, was I out of bounds in your eyes?" She looked sincere again.
He took a deep breath. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. I have to know wether I really am in love. "If you were out of bounds then, I am now as well." He cupped her face in his hands and kissed her. To his joy and relief she didn't struggle. They kissed each other under the waning moon, both suppressing the thought, that what they were doing, would very likely not be allowed by the people home.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AN Wow, I think that is about the longest scene I've ever written, next to chapter 10 of Under Pressure, my Gundam Wing fic currently running. I hope you all enjoyed that. I sure did. I know, I'm weird. Maybe not.