All standard disclaimers that I've already used so far with any of the various stories that I now

have on fanfiction.net will apply. For your information, all of the characters that you may not actually

recognize well enough in this story are original characters of mine, unless otherwise stated, in fact. So

please don't steal my original characters from this story or any others, for that matter.

Now without any further ado, let's get on with the next chapter of this story of mine here, if

that's all right with you here, readers. Please do read, review, and enjoy, if at all possible, quite

naturally enough, readers!

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First Kisses?

A The Chrysanthemum Chronicles Series Story

Inside Raye's Chambers In The Rainbow Springs Palace

Rainbow Springs, Moon Kingdom, Moon

November 19, 986 - November 20, 986

Raye and Bridget then went to Raye's chambers. After which Raye rather quickly changed into

her darkest clean work clothes, so that she'd hopefully not be seen too easily by anyone else. Or at least

anyone else who didn't actually know now that she was planning to stop off in the Double Anchor Garden

to retrieve the message canister that she'd had B.B. bury at least a little deeper there near the statue of

Sailor Calypso, of course. After Raye had then donned her darkest clean work clothes easily enough to

suit her sufficiently well, she then began quite earnestly painting her face, her hands, and any other part of

her that she could see well enough in a mirror with as dark as a paint as she could then use on her skin.

She naturally only used paint that'd also allow all of that exposed skin to breathe sufficiently well, of course.

After she'd painted herself with that black paint as much as she could, she then had B.B. help her out to

the best of her ability, by having her sister Bridget paint any other part of her that she'd likely missed while

putting that paint on herself. Eventually, all of Raye's currently-exposed skin was painted sufficiently well.

When that was done well enough to suit Raye at least that well, Raye soon left her own chambers, with her

sister Bridget not far behind her. B.B. then began extinguishing all lights between Raye's chambers and the

necessary part of the Double Anchor Garden, once she passed Raye at least once more, just outside

Raye's chambers. Raye hid a small lantern mostly behind a rather large cloak, so that she'd not be seen

easily as she went to where the canister was in that garden. But not so far behind it that she'd not be able

to see exactly where she was going on her way there. This, of course, was for all of the obvious reasons.

Eventually, Raye got to the proper place in the garden now in question here. And she began

looking for all of the necessary items on top of the place where the canister was now buried at least two

feet underground. She soon found them. And when she was sure enough that she'd not be seen or heard

by anyone other than Bridget in that very same place, she then set her lantern on a nearby rock. Not the

exact same one that a shovel was under, as a matter of fact. But still a nearby rock, nevertheless.

She then spotted the shovel that B.B. had earlier hidden for her use. And she removed the blue

ribbon from its handle, of course, before she took it all the way out of its current hiding place under a

nearby rock. She stored that ribbon in one of her cloak's pockets. And then she rather quietly began

digging in the proper place, not too long after putting that ribbon and a small Martian flag in one of her

pockets. It then took her several minutes, at least, to dig down enough to be able to remove that canister

from its current hiding place. But she still did so within fifteen minutes after beginning to dig into the ground

above that canister. Which made her rather happy, of course.

Raye then removed the canister in question from that same hiding place. And she put it inside her

cloak as inconspicuously as she possibly could. Then, after she did so, she put quite a bit of fresh potting

soil to replace the part of the hole that had been taken up by the canister, of course. Then, the next thing

she did was to put the Martian rocks that B.B. had left on the place in question above that canister earlier

in another one of her pockets. After that was done, she then began replacing the remainder of the dirt and

grass upon which those rocks and a small Martian flag had secretly been placed on by her sister earlier.

After which, she then soon stamped that dirt and grass down as securely and as quietly as she could, of

course. She did that here so that the ground under which she'd just dug would hopefully not look like it

had ever been disturbed at all to anyone who didn't look at it closely enough. She also did this as quickly

as she possibly could, for all the obvious reasons, of course. Eventually, she then picked up her nearby

lantern, which was still sitting on a nearby rock. And she soon left the area behind again, of course. While

she left it, she then brought the shovel she'd just used back to the exact same place that her sister had gotten

it from earlier. She was very careful where she went on the palace's grounds, whenever she moved on

them, of course. But she still managed to get the shovel back to that place before she was either seen or

heard moving about the palace's grounds by anyone else. Which was most likely very fortunate for her,

as she might someday find out if another canister came to her while she was still on the Rainbow Springs

side of the Moon. And after she did that, she eventually returned to her own Rainbow Springs Palace

chambers again. Quite naturally, she did that even while being very cautious as she did so, of course. She

got safely back to them without anyone else seeing or hearing her as she did so. And she was at least

sufficiently able to get safely into them without alerting anyone else that she'd sneaked into the Double

Anchor Garden that very night. She finally entered them and bolted her chamber doors closest to the

nearby halls just about ten or so minutes before local midnight.

When she did so, she then went to a secret alcove of sorts elsewhere in her chambers. And she

soon was in the middle of a secret passageway to an underground cavern that Raye had discovered not

long after she'd first come to train at the Rainbow Springs Palace some time before. Of course, as soon

as she got far enough inside that secret passageway, she pulled a large bookcase in that hidden alcove that

normally held a lot of her scrolls and/or musical instruments on its shelves, at least, if not also other things

as well on them, back in front of a large opening at one end of that same secret passageway. She then

reached that underground cavern only a few minutes, at most, before local midnight here. She relit her

lantern, which had extinguished itself when she moved the bookcase from its normal position in front of the

aforementioned passageway. She did it with the brief help of a torch from a nearby sconce on one of the

walls of that passageway. She did that here just before she left the general area behind her alcove's

bookcase again for that underground cavern. She went to that very same cavern, for all of the obvious

reasons, of course.

By the time that she got there, her sister was already there. And she was quite anxiously waiting

to see what was in the canister she'd buried for Raye earlier, if it'd be possible for her to do just that, while

she and Raye were still somewhere underground with each other. Which didn't really surprise Raye all that

much. This was because she now knew that B.B. already knew about that same exact underground cavern

below the grounds of the Rainbow Springs Palace.

Bridget had found a secret alcove in her own chambers as well, and a connected secret

passageway that also led to this very cavern, not more than a few hours after she'd first come to the

Rainbow Springs Palace several days, at most, before. After which she soon awaited the likely arrival of

her sister and a number of other Princesses that she then knew were also secretly Sailor Scouts of any

currently-known kinds in the Moon Kingdom. She and Raye, though, were not the only Moon Kingdom

Princesses to have such a feature for their own use in the area of the Rainbow Springs Palace. And they

wouldn't be if they weren't the only Moon Kingdom Princesses to be staying at the Rainbow Springs Palace

in the future, of course. Just as they had such things at their periodical disposals, each of their fellow Moon

Kingdom Princesses who were also secretly Sailor Scouts would also have them at their periodical

disposals. And those other Scouts would have such things at their periodic disposals just in case serious

enough trouble ever showed up at all anywhere in the area of Rainbow Springs on the Moon.

Bridget was now hanging nearly upside-down from a large Martian tree when Raye entered that

underground cavern. And she was hanging upside-down at least forty feet above the surrounding floor of

that cavern, if not more. A moderately large pool was positioned below her, or to some degree, if not

entirely, below her. And Bridget had secured herself to that tree with cords at least eight feet long around

her ankles and a rather large branch of that tree. She was periodically swinging herself back and forth

between the nearby walls of that cavern, touching them every so often whenever she wanted to do that,

with her hands. Never too fast, and never too slow, whenever she did so. Just not at the exact same time

that her sister Raye was entering that cavern somewhere below her was she swinging herself between the

nearby walls of it. Raye watched her briefly, once she entered that cavern. And Raye then went to a

seven-foot-long table about six feet away from the nearest part of the pool that was also in that cavern.

Currently, B.B. was hanging upside-down from the tree in question, with her eyes closed. And she

was not moving at all here currently. For she was now planning her next move in the cavern. Her arms

were crossed across her chest rather loosely, but not too loosely, of course. She wasn't asleep, in fact, but

she wasn't paying much attention to anyone at the moment, just because of the fact that she was now

planning her next move in the cavern. She did hear Raye enter the cavern, though. For she'd not tuned

out all the sounds of the cavern that were currently present in it.

As B.B. contemplated her next move in the cavern, Raye kept one eye on her sister periodically,

while she also set the canister in question on the aforementioned table in it. This, of course, was for all the

obvious reasons. With that done here, Raye then set her lantern down near enough to the canister. Though

not too near it, of course.

Then, Raye went into a nearby nook in the underground cavern, so that she could clean herself up

after having done some digging earlier in the Double Anchor Garden on the grounds of the Rainbow

Springs Palace. She'd take a quick shower after getting a clean set of clothes in her size that was on a shelf

with her name on it in that same nook. After she then took her shower in that nook, she'd leave it again

wearing those clothes, of course, as she carried her now-dirty clothes out of it as well. She went into that

nook in the underground cavern. And she didn't exit from it for at least another ten to twenty minutes after

she did so.

As soon as Raye was in the nook now in question here, Bridget eventually began swinging again

in the part of the cavern that she was now in, and she did it with her eyes closed. She also began singing

a song that Raye had recently sung to her after Raye had returned to the Moon after being on Ozotov IV

for quite a while. She listened to the echoes from her singing that were now bouncing off the nearby walls

of the cavern, so that she could judge rather well how close she was at any particular time to any of them,

as she swung upside-down from the tree that she was now hanging from in it.

As long as she swung, she then sang that certain song here, so that she'd not collide unnecessarily

with any of those walls, if she didn't want to do that at all, of course. Whenever she then touched any of

those walls, she then touched them rather gently whenever possible with her hands. But not too gently for

her not to get the desired force when she pushed herself off them with her hands. Eventually, she then

returned to the exact same position that she'd originally been in when Raye had first joined her in that

underground cavern earlier.

Not long after she did so, then, Raye eventually came out of the nook she'd entered a little while

before. When Raye came out of it, B.B. then swung up again, until she was able to grab securely onto the

same branch that she'd just been swinging and hanging from. It took her about a minute or two more for

B.B. to build up enough speed to allow her to grab that branch sufficiently well, in fact. But B.B. still was

able to do it easily enough, just the same. She swung up then, and her now-accumulated momentum

carried her several feet above the branch in question. Then Bridget began doing some very complex

maneuvers above that branch, just before she pushed off the nearest wall with both her feet and both her

hands, and sprang toward the branch in question. A few feet or so later, she then quite readily caught the

branch as she began falling toward the pool below. She caught it easily enough. And then she hung off it

from her hands for a few minutes, at most, before she began swinging again so that she could eventually

bring herself to a sitting position safely enough on that very branch. A few moments later, at most, as her

sister Raye quite excitedly watched, in a very quiet manner, of course, Bridget finally brought herself to such

a position on that branch.

At least five minutes after she was sure that she wouldn't fall off it too easily for at least a while,

Bridget then stretched out her legs. And she then began untying the cords that connected her ankles and

the tree branch to each other. It took her at least a few seconds to do that, of course. But she still did it,

even with her eyes closed here. For she was thinking about how to get down to Raye safely enough, due

to the fact that she'd not be connected by cords to the tree as she did so. Bridget untied the required cords

around the branch and her ankles. And she then hung them both from hooks on the waist of the navy blue

denim jeans that she was currently wearing in the underground cavern. She hung both cords in such a

manner that she wouldn't get her feet or any other part of her tangled up in her as she descended the tree

that she was now on a branch of in that cavern, of course. This she did as Raye began opening the canister

that Queen Serenity had just sent her a little while before, and taking things out of it that she found in it.

Moments later, she began descending the tree in the necessary manner. When she got just above the area

of the pool near the tree, she then prepared to leap from the tree's trunk to the nearby ground just outside

the area of that pool. She did that here so that she'd not have to worry about landing in it and getting too

wet at the current time. She was now about four to six feet above the surrounding ground, as she did that.

She double-checked her planned landing area under the tree, of course, if she didn't check it more than

that, before she then leapt from that tree's trunk. After she did so well enough to suit her, she then leapt

off the trunk, pushing herself off it, and toward a nearby wall. She then briefly touched her hands and feet

to that particular wall. And that made her rise for a few seconds in the air above the surrounding ground.

Or at least long enough for her to do a full forward somersault with two rather quick clockwise twists to

her right, it did so here. She then did that full forward somersault with two rather quick clockwise twists

rather easily. And as she finished them both, she then stretched out her legs in the necessary manner, so

that she'd not hurt herself at all as she then landed, near the table Raye was now spreading the things from

the canister on, rather quickly, yet rather gently, on both her feet. No more than a few seconds after she'd

just finished her full somersault and twists, B.B. finally did land both rather quickly and rather gently on the

ground near the table Raye was now at in the cavern.

When B.B. was sufficiently sure that she'd done that safely enough, and that she'd been able to

adjust to being back on the ground easily enough, she then asked, "Raye, how did you like my latest

maneuvers that you saw from me here in this cavern?"

"Bridget, you're amazing!"

"No, I don't really think so, Raye. For I've done this kind of stuff plenty of times before."

"Then why haven't I seen it more than I have?"

"Because, dear sister, where have you spent most of at least the last nine or so years, if not longer,

in your own life?"

"On the Moon, Bridget, with Serena and at least three to five other Princesses from our very own

Moon Kingdom, as well as several other people we've all met before on it."

"There's your answer, then, Raye."

"Are you saying that just because I've not often been back to Mars, Phobos, and/or Deimos in my

life since I first came here to the Moon around Serena's first birthday, I've not often seen you do this kind

of stuff before, Bridget?"

"You might say that. Weren't you on the Moon when I was born?"

"Come to think of it, I think I was. It'd have been almost seven months after my second birthday

when you were born, I believe. And if I'm not mistaken, about that time, I was either in residence at the

Crystal Palace, or at the Imperial Palace. Which, as you now know, are both on the Moon City side of

the Moon. I believe that I was often there with at least a few other people, in fact. Which, of course,

would, at that particular time in my life, have likely included Serena, Amy, Lita, Mina, Luna, Artemis,

Queen Serenity, Prince Daniel, and any number of Queen Serenity's own servants, at least. If not also

anyone else who was currently in residence at the palace we were currently staying in then, of course. I

believe when you were born, Prince Darien was also in current residence in that particular palace, visiting

a number of us Princesses there for a while. I actually didn't know you'd even been born until Queen

Serenity and Prince Daniel gave me a canister from Mom and Dad that they'd sent to me here on the

Moon. I only knew that they were expecting another child, from the last canister I'd received before Queen

Serenity and Prince Daniel gave me the canister with another message in it that told me that I now had a

new baby sister. A new baby sister named Bridget Blossom Hino, as a matter of fact."

"And after I was born, you didn't see me in person until you came back to the Martian mini-system

in mid-July of 980, I think."

"Yes, that sounds about right, Bridget. You'd have been about twenty months or so old, give or

take a few weeks or days, at most, when I first saw you in person. I wish I could have been around when

you were born, though, Bridget. For I think it would've really been nice to see you being born."

"It just wasn't possible then, Raye. Mom and Dad wanted you to be on the Moon for quite a while,

if at all possible, Raye. As a matter of fact, until Mother learned that she was carrying me, she thought God

would only give her one child during her child-bearing years. Meaning you, of course, Raye. I was at least

a little bit unexpected, though. But she soon took to me, as soon as she learned that you likely wouldn't

be her only daughter. So did Dad. I was a rather healthy and rather cute baby when I was born, from

what I've learned about that time in my life. I had the pinkest cheeks that Mom thought she'd ever seen

on a newborn baby. And she thought they looked like the fruit of the Rytheriopia Platoznia kind of Martian

roses. Which Terrans might possibly consider to be blossoms, if I'm not mistaken. So that is why I have

the middle name of Blossom. Bridget in my name came from our Mom's paternal grandmother, who

actually suggested it to Mom while she was still carrying me about two weeks before I was born."

"So that's why you have the names you do, Bridget. I didn't realize why you'd been given those

names before. I was always wondering why you were given those names. I hadn't heard the story that you

just told me. Sure, I knew that you were given those names, of course. But I never understood why until

just now."

"I see. Did you know that Mom's paternal grandmother also predicted that we'd both be Sailor

Scouts before each of our births?"

"No, I didn't know that. Who told you that?"

"Mom, just before I came here while you were still away from the Moon on your latest rather

unexpected adventure. She told me that. And she told me that she was very proud of us both in her life.

She doesn't really expect to see either of us again, though, in either of our lives here on the Moon. She says

periodically to me, at least, that she'll never likely leave our mini-system again. She realizes that if the

predictions about the future that several people in our Moon Kingdom have been making for at least the

last few years are accurate enough, she probably will never see either or both of us again. Or at least not

while the Moon Kingdom still exists. She doesn't like that, of course. But she realizes that might very well

prove to be the case for all of us, if the Negaversers are just too strong for us to save the Moon Kingdom

and for us all to survive easily enough."

Then Raye considered what Bridget had just said to her, for a little while, before she said, "To tell

you the truth, I'll likely never get back to Mars, Phobos, and/or Deimos before that happens, if it ever does,

I think. If so, then I'll most likely really miss being on our worlds in that mini-system, if and when it does.

Most especially, I'll miss being on Mars again, if that's the case here for me, at least, of course, Bridget."

"I think none of us who are Princesses in Serena's royal Court are ever going to be able to return

to our respective worlds. Or at least not while we're all trying to prepare ourselves, as much as we each

can possibly prepare ourselves, for the increasingly likely invasion by the Negaversers, Raye. Or at least

those of us who aren't from either the Moon or Terra in our own solar system here in the Milky Way

Galaxy of the known Universe, I believe. Darien and his fellow Earthlings might be able to do so. But

those of us who aren't actually from the Moon might not be able to do so, if I'm not too mistaken here.

And if the various predictions that have previously been made about our own Moon Kingdom are

sufficiently accurate in their respective natures, Raye."

"I've often been thinking much the same thing, Bridget. That's why I've done at least one piece of

music on the 'Memory of Mars' scroll that I told you about earlier. Hopefully, if worst comes to worst for

our Moon Kingdom eventually, all our things will somehow survive our transfer or transfers to Earth."

"And if they do in such a case at least one time, if not more, you're hoping that you'll be able to play

any of the pieces of music that you've already composed in your life here in the Moon Kingdom again, at

least once more for each of them, if at all possible, in the future?"

"Correct. Now I don't know if that'll ever be possible, of course. But if it is, great. I may be

unable to play them again, for any reason whatsoever, Bridget, in the future. Supposing, of course, that

I at least survive somehow to live at least once in the future somewhere on Earth, if nowhere else in the

known Universe. I could end up being copied, in a manner of speaking, in fact. As could any of the rest

of us who Queen Serenity might somehow be able to save in the future, of course."

"And what do you think of that possibility?"

"It might be weird to meet myself at least once, if such a thing as my getting copied somehow

actually happens to me while I'm heading to Terra to live on it in the future. And if I'm ever somehow able

to do that at least once sometime later on at all. I'd probably be willing to bet, supposing, of course,

someone first challenged me sufficiently enough for me to do so, that any of the other Princesses would feel

much, if not entirely, the same way. That's if and/or when the exact same thing actually happened to them

at least once in the future, if and when they also made it off the Moon somehow because of Queen Serenity,

of course."

Then, as Raye said that, she also removed a scroll from the canister on the table. Raye moved a

few things on that table to one side or another on it. She did that here, in fact, just so that she'd then have

enough room to spread that scroll out enough for her to read Chad's recent message to her from the other

side of the Moon. As she spread it out, she then had Bridget place paperweights on top of it wherever

necessary. And to do that here so that it actually wouldn't roll itself back up prematurely before Raye had

finished reading all of Chad's recent message to her here.

Raye soon read, as Bridget periodically made sure that Raye's lantern wouldn't go out while she

was reading the message from Chad to her:

"Raye, I really don't know where you are right now. But I'd really like to see you again

around Christmas, if that's all right with you, and if it's at all possible. I have some news from Mars that

I think you might be interested in, Raye. And I've also been wondering if and when we'll be able to dance

together again someday at another ball here in the Moon Kingdom. I've also been thinking of you quite

a bit of late. And I'm wondering if you've been doing the same thing too, in terms of thinking about me.

Yes, I know that we're both just kids still, and I'm about a year or two older than you, if I'm not too

mistaken here. But I'm still really wondering if you've ever considered me as a potential future mate for you

someday, if at all possible, in fact.

"For some reason, I seem to see you quite often in my recent dreams and/or visions. And

I really don't know why. Could it be that we'll eventually leave the Moon Kingdom, as a number of other

people in the Moon Kingdom are evidently suggesting now, just as a lot of those people have been doing

for at least a few years? I don't really know how we'd ever leave this Moon Kingdom of ours, Raye. And

why we'd be seeing each other again at least once more, if we did so. I started experiencing at least a few

dreams and/or visions just before you disappeared from the Moon City area at least a while ago, and I'm

still experiencing them periodically. I don't know why. But from what I can understand of them, it seems

that if they're sufficiently accurate in their respective natures, we in the Moon Kingdom could be in very

serious, if not very grave, danger from at least one other place elsewhere in the known Universe. Can you

tell me if you're having such things happen to you too, Raye? And can you tell me where you went off to

all of a sudden with Serena and a number of other people from all over the Moon Kingdom, and why? I'd

really like to know. I've asked Queen Serenity where you are now, and where all your fellow Princesses

that I haven't seen for a while as well are now. But she keeps giving me rather evasive answers. I can't

really understand why that's the case, right here and right now. For isn't she supposed to tell the truth as

often as possible in her life?

"Yes, I realize that she does have to keep some things very secret, due to her position as Queen

of our Moon Kingdom, of course. But she still won't tell me where you girls are, if she even knows where

you all are right now. I wonder if she even knows where you all are right now. I think she does. But if

so, I don't really understand why she won't tell me where you all are right now. I've heard several rumors

of late that you Princesses are secretly working for people that are jealous of the Moon Kingdom and its

many inhabited worlds and moons, at the very least, and who'd want to see it fall apart. I really don't

believe them, Raye. You girls all really do care for the Moon Kingdom, I know. And I can't possibly

believe that you Princesses would want to see it fall apart at all. I don't really know how much longer,

though, that I'll be able to say that. For various people have suggested to me, at least, that you Princesses

aren't really who you all say you are. Both in the Martian mini-system and out of it. I really do hope that

all those people who've actually suggested such things to me here, though, are entirely wrong about you

all, of course, Raye."

The message to her continued for quite a while longer, until he finally signed it:

"Your dear friend, Chad of Fireball on Mars." There was nothing more after that to the message,

after which Raye then rolled up the scroll again all the way, of course.

Then Bridget asked Raye, "Are you going to tell him what's actually going on for each of us, and

where we all are right now, Raye?"

"No, I don't think so, my dear sister Bridget Blossom Hino. And even if I really wanted to do that

here, Queen Serenity probably wouldn't want me to, for all the obvious reasons, of course, Bridget. Don't

get me wrong, I like him at least a little. And I don't think I'd mind ever winding up with him someday, if

that's how things actually do work out for the both of us here. Meaning him and me, obviously enough,

Bridget. But I really don't think I like him enough yet to let the proverbial cat out of the bag, as the Terrans

might actually say here. That's if I were to tell him about where we've all been of late, and what we've been

doing since the last time he saw any or all of us in person, of course."

"But you'd rather be with Darien right now more, if at all possible."

"I suppose so. Even though I know he's not a Martian, I think so, Bridget, at least a little bit, if not

a whole lot, in my own life."

"Unlike Chad, who we know is actually from Mars, and who is probably quite a bit louder than

Darien likely is in his own life."

"Yes. Darien normally prefers quiet places whenever possible. And he's not apparently much for

a lot of loud music or noise, I believe, from my past observations about him, whenever I've been with him

here on the Moon at all. Chad, though, is a lot like me, in that we both often like a lot of loud things

whenever we can have them in our lives. Or at least, I believe that's true about both of us quite a bit of the

time. I may nag him, of course. But I still think that we both consider each other to be among our friends,

or our closest friends, if I'm not too mistaken about that here. Sure, we may yell rather often at each other.

But we're both rather loyal to our friends, whoever they may be, in each of our lives, Bridget."

"So who do you think you'll eventually end up with, if you ever do get married to some guy

someday in the future?"

"Probably Chad, though I'd prefer to wind up with Darien, of course. Serena will likely end up with

Darien, Amy with Greg, Lita with Ken, and Mina with Steven or someone else who I may not yet know

of in her life. At least, that's what I'm suspecting might happen in the future, if we ever do end up on Earth

at least once, if not more. I still don't know if you other Princesses will end up on Earth at least once

apiece, of course. And if you do, who each of you will end up with in your lives, if at all possible."

Bridget and Raye talked some more for at least another fifteen or so minutes, before Bridget finally

said, "Raye, I think we should both get back to our respective chambers in the palace as quickly as we can,

so that we can hopefully get at least a bit of sleep before we'll have to train again after local dawn."

"Agreed, Bridget."

So both of them each gathered up all the things they'd just brought with them to the cavern. And

they soon parted from each other, in order for them both to return to their respective chambers in the

palace for at least a little while. They didn't really want to, of course. But they realized that if they didn't,

they'd both probably not be able to do as well as they might prefer to do in their next training sessions. Or

at least until they got enough sleep to allow them to do that easily enough in their respective lives, anyway.

So they soon left the cavern for their own chambers. And both retired no more than about five minutes or

so after they each returned to them some time later.

And then they soon slept rather soundly in each of their beds for at least a while, as they rested

themselves as much as they possibly could, and as they had at least one pleasant dream apiece, in those

beds of theirs in their respective chambers. They didn't rise from their respective beds until at least local

dawn, if not even later than that. And they only rose when they began hearing either knocks on the door

or doors to their own chambers. Or when they both began hearing at least a few bells ringing in the halls

near their own chambers, in the Rainbow Springs Palace. For they'd both stayed up at least a little bit past

their usual bedtimes while they were on the opposite side of the Moon from Moon City, which was on the

side of the Moon that often, if not all the time, faced the Earth.

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I really do hope that you all have enjoyed the first two stories in this particular story series, and the

first eight chapters of this third story, if you've actually gotten this far. And that you'll all continue to read

its related story series, of course, once I put even more of it up here. The other chapters of this third story

in the series will be up shortly, if at all possible, readers, for your information. I really don't know yet just

how long it'll still take me to get each story in this series up fully here. But it might take a while for each

story in this series, just the same, readers. Until later, then, this is "The Universal Storyteller" signing off

here. Happy reading, and God bless, and all that, of course, readers! Over and out!