Author's Note: Sadly, sadly, I still do NOT own Sailor Moon *sigh.* And
chances are that that will not change in the future *laughs.* Oh well, I
hope readers will enjoy it anyway!! I promise that things are about to get
much better!
**************************************************************************** **********
Mud clung to the hem of Serenity's bulky skirts as she tugged two strands of barbed-wire together with her gloved hand, attempting to repair the stiff, frozen fence. The wool mittens had already been snagged by the sharp, protruding spikes, and her frustration with the uncooperative structure was rapidly escalating. Brown fabric drooped over her fiery, blue eyes, and she angrily pushed the hood off of her head before continuing to work. In the north, even summer's breath held nothing but cold, harsh wind and ice-cold snow, and as it exhaled, biting drifts rushed down Serenity's neck and around her newly exposed ears. She briefly considered untying her tightly plaited silver-blonde hair to better cover her ears and neck, but a harsh gust of wind that would have blown away any such loose strands immediately changed her mind.
Sinking to her knees in the shapeless brown dress, the woman yanked both ends of the severed wire towards each other. The ends finally touched, and Serenity's gloved fingers quickly wound the ends about one another to prevent them from parting again. Her skirts had absorbed much of the cold, liquefied snow, and she eagerly stood up, forgetting to fully remove her numb hands from the barbed-wire. Her left hand had escaped the teeth of the fence without incident; however, her right hand was not as fortunate.
Serenity's mud-splashed braid fell over her shoulder as she fell back to her knees and removed the torn glove. An angry red gash split the center of her small, delicate hand. Wasting little time bemoaning her misfortune, she tore the glove until it was one long strip of fabric and stuffing. Placing the seemingly clean snow over her wound, she tied it around her bleeding palm.
"Serenity!!. Serenity!!. Why haven't you finished your chores?!!" the angry voice of Lord Tsuniko of Avenroi called out over the snow-kissed landscape. "Serenity!!! The Lord Robinet will be here at any moment, and should there be the mere suggestion of uncleanness in this household, I will give you a lashing you will not soon forget!! Serenity!!!!"
"I'm coming, father!" Serenity called out as meekly as she could, praying that her father found no offense in her tone. "I'm on my way!"
The young woman collected her wet, bulky skirts and began to trudge through the thick drifts of snow leading to Avenroi manor. The manor was not far from where she had been working considering the size estate; however, it still took Serenity seventeen minutes to finally reach the entrance to the house. Lord Tsuniko was waiting for her with more impatience than she had witnessed in a long time.
"Shingo needs to be fed," her father snapped angrily, dropping a tray of food into her arms before she could speak. The weight of it wore heavily on her new wound, but she did not speak a word of complaint.
Shingo's room was on the second floor of the manor down a long, deserted hallway. His chamber had not always been so secluded; Serenity's room was once next to his. She remembered sneaking into his room when she was scared or lonely as a child. His brilliant smile and affectionate teasing always made her forget the brooding evils of the imagination that had initially drove her to her brother.
She slipped inside of his bedroom door and briefly wondered if he wished that he had someone to chase away his fears now. "Shingo? I've brought you some food. How are you feeling today?"
"Sere!" a cheerful, but weak, cry sounded from the far-reaches of the dark room. Even with the husky, baritone voice of manhood, Shingo sounded gleefully childlike. "Come to see your old brother, huh? 'Fraid I'm not much fun, kiddo. Mind you, I am quite peckish. Perhaps I could amuse you with my grotesque eating habits. How's our old man? He avoids me like the plague, that one."
Serenity giggled as her older brother moved easily from one question to another. His rapid speech barely left her room to breathe between topics. "How have you been, Shingo?"
"Well, to tell you the truth, I have see better days," he quickly caught her face falling into concern and winked at her. "Then again, Sere, I've seen worse. Has that old bugger downstairs been giving you lashings? You're dripping blood on my nice bedsheets."
"Oh!" Serenity quickly settled the tray on the small table beside Shingo's bed and re-wrapped her palm. "No, father had nothing to do with this. I cut myself on the fence. I didn't have time to wrap it properly, that's all. I'm sorry about your bedsheets."
"I was only joking, Sere. 'Bout time they washed them anyway," he mumbled between mouthfuls of bread. He noticed Serenity's crystalline eyes watching him carefully and sighed. "What's the matter, Sere?"
Serenity cast her eyes away from his. "I'm worried about you, Shingo. Columbia and father keep saying that you won't live through this," she whispered as though speaking louder would make it true.
"I'm doing the best I can to stay alive, Sere, but it doesn't look good for me," he tugged on Serenity's silver-blonde braid and coaxed her lips away from her teeth. He returned her smile before continuing. "I'm sure it'll all work out, Sere. If I do die, you and Columbia will figure out something. You'll get married, have kids, a good provider.it won't be bad."
"For Columbia--"
"Sere, that's not nice. I'm trying to help."
"Exactly! So stay alive for me, Shingo," the young woman sighed. "Columbia drools over the mere thought of marriage. It would be a blissful dream for her if she could go off and forever be secure. I don't want that. I don't want to be a slave to some man and bear his children! The simple thought of it disgusts me! If you die, I won't be able to stay here and work. Not that working's great, but it's better than becoming a feeble slave! Father will not want to have us; we are a burden to his finances. The only reason we've been allowed to stay here is because you said that you'd play caretaker to us. He would have sold us off by now if you hadn't said that!"
"You wouldn't have been 'sold,' Sere."
"You know what I mean, Shingo," Serenity frowned.
Shingo paused, considering her words, before she spoke again. "Columbia never liked the idea, did she?"
"No.she never did," Serenity nodded, "but I do. You're protecting me."
"You don't need me to protect you, Serenity," Shingo murmured. "You are stronger than I am. Stronger than most people. You just don't realize it yet, that's all. I think that you need someone to give you a gentle shove towards your strength. I know that it's there. I've known it ever since you got that mark on your forehead."
"I'm not a witch! Please don't tell me that you think that I'm a witch, Shingo!" Serenity cried out in shock.
"No, no," Shingo laughed softly. "I know that you're not a witch, Serenity. You're something greater; I know it. Besides, I don't think that a witch would have a crescent moon as a marking. It's not very intimidating, you know? It's just not witchy."
"Maybe they'd have a bat, or a broom?" Serenity teased.
Shingo shrugged and pulled the blankets closer to his chin. "I don't think a witch would bother with a mark, actually. I think that it's kind of pretty, you know? It seems to sparkle gold; it reflects light."
"All the more reason for them to burn me at the stake," Serenity mumbled.
Shingo simply smiled before passing out again. Serenity grabbed the book beside the untouched tray of food and took it to her brother's solid oak desk. Using the quill and inkpot, she quickly recorded Shingo's lapse into unconsciousness. Reviewing the past entries, Serenity discovered that hi s fainting episodes were becoming more frequent. She returned the book to the bedside table and gingerly tugged at the blankets so they would cover his shoulder.
"Stay with us, Shingo. We need you."
**************************************************************************** **********
Mud clung to the hem of Serenity's bulky skirts as she tugged two strands of barbed-wire together with her gloved hand, attempting to repair the stiff, frozen fence. The wool mittens had already been snagged by the sharp, protruding spikes, and her frustration with the uncooperative structure was rapidly escalating. Brown fabric drooped over her fiery, blue eyes, and she angrily pushed the hood off of her head before continuing to work. In the north, even summer's breath held nothing but cold, harsh wind and ice-cold snow, and as it exhaled, biting drifts rushed down Serenity's neck and around her newly exposed ears. She briefly considered untying her tightly plaited silver-blonde hair to better cover her ears and neck, but a harsh gust of wind that would have blown away any such loose strands immediately changed her mind.
Sinking to her knees in the shapeless brown dress, the woman yanked both ends of the severed wire towards each other. The ends finally touched, and Serenity's gloved fingers quickly wound the ends about one another to prevent them from parting again. Her skirts had absorbed much of the cold, liquefied snow, and she eagerly stood up, forgetting to fully remove her numb hands from the barbed-wire. Her left hand had escaped the teeth of the fence without incident; however, her right hand was not as fortunate.
Serenity's mud-splashed braid fell over her shoulder as she fell back to her knees and removed the torn glove. An angry red gash split the center of her small, delicate hand. Wasting little time bemoaning her misfortune, she tore the glove until it was one long strip of fabric and stuffing. Placing the seemingly clean snow over her wound, she tied it around her bleeding palm.
"Serenity!!. Serenity!!. Why haven't you finished your chores?!!" the angry voice of Lord Tsuniko of Avenroi called out over the snow-kissed landscape. "Serenity!!! The Lord Robinet will be here at any moment, and should there be the mere suggestion of uncleanness in this household, I will give you a lashing you will not soon forget!! Serenity!!!!"
"I'm coming, father!" Serenity called out as meekly as she could, praying that her father found no offense in her tone. "I'm on my way!"
The young woman collected her wet, bulky skirts and began to trudge through the thick drifts of snow leading to Avenroi manor. The manor was not far from where she had been working considering the size estate; however, it still took Serenity seventeen minutes to finally reach the entrance to the house. Lord Tsuniko was waiting for her with more impatience than she had witnessed in a long time.
"Shingo needs to be fed," her father snapped angrily, dropping a tray of food into her arms before she could speak. The weight of it wore heavily on her new wound, but she did not speak a word of complaint.
Shingo's room was on the second floor of the manor down a long, deserted hallway. His chamber had not always been so secluded; Serenity's room was once next to his. She remembered sneaking into his room when she was scared or lonely as a child. His brilliant smile and affectionate teasing always made her forget the brooding evils of the imagination that had initially drove her to her brother.
She slipped inside of his bedroom door and briefly wondered if he wished that he had someone to chase away his fears now. "Shingo? I've brought you some food. How are you feeling today?"
"Sere!" a cheerful, but weak, cry sounded from the far-reaches of the dark room. Even with the husky, baritone voice of manhood, Shingo sounded gleefully childlike. "Come to see your old brother, huh? 'Fraid I'm not much fun, kiddo. Mind you, I am quite peckish. Perhaps I could amuse you with my grotesque eating habits. How's our old man? He avoids me like the plague, that one."
Serenity giggled as her older brother moved easily from one question to another. His rapid speech barely left her room to breathe between topics. "How have you been, Shingo?"
"Well, to tell you the truth, I have see better days," he quickly caught her face falling into concern and winked at her. "Then again, Sere, I've seen worse. Has that old bugger downstairs been giving you lashings? You're dripping blood on my nice bedsheets."
"Oh!" Serenity quickly settled the tray on the small table beside Shingo's bed and re-wrapped her palm. "No, father had nothing to do with this. I cut myself on the fence. I didn't have time to wrap it properly, that's all. I'm sorry about your bedsheets."
"I was only joking, Sere. 'Bout time they washed them anyway," he mumbled between mouthfuls of bread. He noticed Serenity's crystalline eyes watching him carefully and sighed. "What's the matter, Sere?"
Serenity cast her eyes away from his. "I'm worried about you, Shingo. Columbia and father keep saying that you won't live through this," she whispered as though speaking louder would make it true.
"I'm doing the best I can to stay alive, Sere, but it doesn't look good for me," he tugged on Serenity's silver-blonde braid and coaxed her lips away from her teeth. He returned her smile before continuing. "I'm sure it'll all work out, Sere. If I do die, you and Columbia will figure out something. You'll get married, have kids, a good provider.it won't be bad."
"For Columbia--"
"Sere, that's not nice. I'm trying to help."
"Exactly! So stay alive for me, Shingo," the young woman sighed. "Columbia drools over the mere thought of marriage. It would be a blissful dream for her if she could go off and forever be secure. I don't want that. I don't want to be a slave to some man and bear his children! The simple thought of it disgusts me! If you die, I won't be able to stay here and work. Not that working's great, but it's better than becoming a feeble slave! Father will not want to have us; we are a burden to his finances. The only reason we've been allowed to stay here is because you said that you'd play caretaker to us. He would have sold us off by now if you hadn't said that!"
"You wouldn't have been 'sold,' Sere."
"You know what I mean, Shingo," Serenity frowned.
Shingo paused, considering her words, before she spoke again. "Columbia never liked the idea, did she?"
"No.she never did," Serenity nodded, "but I do. You're protecting me."
"You don't need me to protect you, Serenity," Shingo murmured. "You are stronger than I am. Stronger than most people. You just don't realize it yet, that's all. I think that you need someone to give you a gentle shove towards your strength. I know that it's there. I've known it ever since you got that mark on your forehead."
"I'm not a witch! Please don't tell me that you think that I'm a witch, Shingo!" Serenity cried out in shock.
"No, no," Shingo laughed softly. "I know that you're not a witch, Serenity. You're something greater; I know it. Besides, I don't think that a witch would have a crescent moon as a marking. It's not very intimidating, you know? It's just not witchy."
"Maybe they'd have a bat, or a broom?" Serenity teased.
Shingo shrugged and pulled the blankets closer to his chin. "I don't think a witch would bother with a mark, actually. I think that it's kind of pretty, you know? It seems to sparkle gold; it reflects light."
"All the more reason for them to burn me at the stake," Serenity mumbled.
Shingo simply smiled before passing out again. Serenity grabbed the book beside the untouched tray of food and took it to her brother's solid oak desk. Using the quill and inkpot, she quickly recorded Shingo's lapse into unconsciousness. Reviewing the past entries, Serenity discovered that hi s fainting episodes were becoming more frequent. She returned the book to the bedside table and gingerly tugged at the blankets so they would cover his shoulder.
"Stay with us, Shingo. We need you."