Prologue

Cloak and Dagger

Author: December Kiss

URL: ... I'll get back to you on that one...

Released: October 13th, 2004

DISCLAIMER: In no way do I claim the rights to any of the characters in this story (well, the Sailor Senshi and any characters who appear in Naoko Takeuchi's manga/anime, anyway). Any other characters are of my own making, so please ask permission if you ever get the urge to borrow one! 'Nuff said. Thanks, and please- R&R!!! X December Kiss X

Has there ever been a time in your life when you felt alienated, as if there was nothing you could do to possibly be like everyone else but it was what you wanted more than anything else in the world?

That's the way Hotaru felt every day of her life- she couldn't even recall having a single friend throughout the 17 years of her existence. People scoffed at her Gothic attire and anti-social ways. Every person she'd ever met always mistook her for "a rebel, or a freak of society." Both of which, naturally, she was not.

People based too many opinions on first appearances. That's one of the golden rules she'd learned so far. She happened to like dark shades of indigo, violet, and black, mostly because they were simple and didn't attract that much attention, since she was still a bit shy- not as much as she used to be- but still timid from time to time when dealing with people on social terms. Oh, did she forget to mention that's why people also thought she was a bit of a loner?

Hotaru was never allowed to have a normal childhood like other girls her age. Most little girls went to tea parties or at this age as teenagers, attended balls and other royal functions. Oh, yeah. That's another part of Hotaru's life that she never was able to choose for herself- she would forever be known not as just Hotaru, but as Princess Hotaru, heir to the dynasty of the planet Saturn. Speaking of her home planet, it didn't help her social reputation very much considering that she lived on the most feared planet in the Solar System.

Although it was simply a legend handed down generation after generation (okay, a very popular legend), it was said that "when the Light of the Moon failed to shine, then the Messenger of Death would bring an end to the Silver Millennium." Not a very cheerful future to look forward to, huh?

In reality, this demented fairy tale sent chills down Hotaru's spine. The end of the world was a concept scary enough as it was, but the fact that she was possibly the one destined for this horrible act against humanity was what terrified her the most and haunted her dreams at night. How did she know that she specifically was the infamous Angel of Death? It bridges down into her planet's well-known history of harboring skilled assassins trained in the "art of killing," so to speak. From the time they were born, people who inhabited Saturn were taught the most effective and deadliest combat skills; the planet was also famous for making the best weapons available in the galaxy, useful for their durability and light-weight, which of course made them easier to handle and finish opponents quickly.

Hotaru, despite the fact that she was a princess, was also required to learn about death (since it was after all the law of the land). It was especially important that she know how to protect herself should the need ever arise since she was future-Queen material. Throughout her training, she always treated her instructors with cold indifference. While she didn't particularly care for the ability to know how to kill someone, she did find martial arts rather interesting. Hell- she'd take learning how to kick someone's ass over learning how to sew and sing any day. Hmmmm... maybe living on a planet with a reputation for putting out some great warriors wasn't such a bad thing.

The grim reality of war and the heat of true battle, where life or death was actually a serious issue, had never crossed Hotaru's path. It was one of the reasons that fueled her indifference to the topic. She almost hoped, in her uttermost sense of human compassion and morale, she would never have to use her knowledge on anyone. She'd always heard stories of soldiers killing their enemies and having to relive the nightmare of watching someone die due to an action they could've prevented, but at the same time, couldn't be helped if they wanted to survive. What a cruel joke.

Hotaru also knew that deep down inside her life and views were about to change.

Everything that was familiar to her in an almost surreal way was about to become gut-wrenchingly real. There's this "Right of Passage" ceremony that Hotaru must undergo if she were to be Queen someday. Everyone who had come before her in the royal line had to do it, so she knew she wasn't going to be let off the hook so easily. What made it so difficult for her to swallow? The task was that she must make her first kill on the eve before her 18th birthday. Why? To prove her competence as a fighter, supposedly- and that she had enough mental strength to deal with "living with death on the mind." She knew politics could be just as trying on a person's mind, which is why the country need to know if she was capable of being a strong leader for them.

The chore was this- sneak out of the grounds of the castle (and planet) unnoticed and arrive at her point of destination unseen by anyone. She had to make her kill silently and quickly, and return to her homeland with evidence she had fulfilled the task required of her by dawn the next morning. Everything called for a certain degree of stealth and caution that she knew she had, but wasn't quite ready to show yet.

Piece of cake, right?

Hotaru knew exactly how she was going to go about killing him (and by him she means a young general not much older than herself who was plotting an uprising against intergalactic forces stationed on Earth). It would drain her of everything she had, to be sure, but she knew there was not an alternative. She had to do it. She had been prepared for this day her entire life by her people, her family, and her subordinates.

Too bad nothing could've braced her for the effects of forbidden love.

8

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Well, that's the start of it anyway. Hope you enjoyed it. Any comments/criticism is very appreciated. Thanks! DK