"I'll see you tomorrow, Candra-chan! Stay safe!"
Having become bored with
sitting around, Candra decided to venture out and explore where
she was being held. It hasn't taken her long to get lost.
Candra
sighed as she walked past another unknown room. She had finally
concluded that she was being held in the Silver Millennium, but
when you are away from a place for over a thousand years, you tend
to forget where certain rooms are.
She opened another door and
saw a big crystal tower in the middle of a huge room. Something,
maybe the size, maybe the texture, drew her to the it. She placed
her hand on it.
"Search for the passage."
Her
hand snapped back. "What? Who's there?" There was no
response to her question and no one else in the room. She put her
hand back on the tower. Nothing happened.
Wiping the sweat off
her forehead, she turned and quickly exited the room. "I
should get back my room before Grety finds out I left." She
noticed she was shaking. "I probably should take a nap,
too."
Candra made her way down several hallways. While a
few things looked farmilar, none of it helped her find her way
back. Then, she passed the room where the crystal tower was
housed. She sighed and asked it, "Please get me back to my
room."
She wasn't expecting a response, but out of
nowhere, she saw a farmilar ghost. "Queen Serenity?"
Candra chased the spirit up one hallway and down another. After a
few minutes, the ghost disappeared as quickly as it had
come.
"Queen Serenity? . . . .Mama?" That's when she
looked over and realized she was standing in front of her room.
With tears in her eyes (from both relief and sadness), Candra
smiled and slipped in her room.
"Candra-chan? Are you
there?" Candra heard Usagi's voice coming from her
mini-computer. It was very faint and surrounded by
static.
"Serenity?" Candra rushed to the night table,
but by the time she flipped up the lid, the voice was
one.
"Usagi,
I hate to sound mean, but you've tried to contact Candra-chan ten
times now. She can't hear you." Rei sighed as Usagi finally
put down her communicator.
Mamoru rubbed Usagi's neck. "It's
a nice, beautiful day today, Usako. Let's just enjoy the
picnic."
"Besides, one of Candra-chan's brothers is
really hot," giggled Minako.
Usagi looked over at their
improv American Football game. "Which one?" she
asked.
pointed to the one with green hair. "I forgot his
name, but that's him."
"Jim-san? You like him?"
asked Usagi.
Minako crossed her arms. "And what is wrong
with that?"
"All I have to say about him is that I
hope he can tolerate you," said Rei.
Minako looked the
other way with a huff. "Meanie."
They watched as
Lance threw the football to Jim. "Maybe you could ask him
about that game, how it's played and all," suggested
Mako.
"Hey! Not a bad idea!" Minako jumped up. "Hey
Jim-san!" The group
laughed.
Candra
searched through her closet for something else to wear besides the
gray, floor-length dress she had been wearing for a week. "'Search
for the passage'," Candra repeated to herself. She still
hadn't figured out who had said that or what the passage in
question was.
"Dang! I had a lot of clothes as Princess."
"I am not wearing this stupid dress one more day.. . .
Although this one here is a little too reveling. Hey, what's
that?" Candra found, thrown in the corner, a black shirt and
dark jean overalls. They looked farmilar, though she couldn't
remember at first. Once she picked them up, however, she
did.
"Shouldn't a princess of the Moon Kingdom be
wearing something a little more. . . presentable?"
"Hey!
Have you ever tried to climb a tree with a dress on?"
"I
remember. . .This was my favorite outfit." She knelt down for
a closer look. "I could climb trees, sneak into the city. .
.Hey, what's that?" In the corner next to the clothes, there
was an outline of a door. It was at waist level and looked big
enough to fit through. "'Search for the passage.' I get
it!"
"Serenity?" said Grety in this singsong
voice.
"Shoot. Coming! And it's Princess!"
"So,
do you enjoy your dinner?" asked Grety.
"Oh. It's
great." Candra put another forkful in her mouth. She hadn't
eaten much since she got here, but she was doing a pretty good job
in hiding it.
"My dear, what is the matter?" Grety
tried to show sympathy.
Candra didn't buy it. "Well, gee.
When someone kidnaps you from your home, your family, and your
friends, you tend to get a little upset. Hey, don't give me that
look! You brought this upon me; I had nothing to do with
it."
Grety stood up very dramatically. If looks could
kill, the palace would have been leveled.
He grabbed her by the
neck and picked her up. "My fault?" He threw her across
the room. "This is your fault! If you had just accepted me as
your true mate, none of this would have happened!" He walked
across the room with fire in his eyes and grabbed her neck again,
this time leaving her on the floor. "You should have just
accepted me. Not that stupid Prince. He was the enemy!"
"He's
more of a man than you'll ever be!" Candra screamed, blood
trickling from her mouth.
She was slapped for that. "So,
you slept with him before me?"
"No!"
"That's
good. Because. . ."
Candra couldn't take it anymore. She
kicked him in the stomach. She rubbed her neck as she got her
breath back. "You sh. . .should think of . . .others . .
.before yourself. Maybe that's why you had to pursue me!" She
got up and hurried from the room.
Grety's eyes turned red.
"That's it, little girl. I think your boyfriend deserves a
little
punishment."
Minako
rubbed her chin. This game was beginning to give her more than her
share of bumps and bruises. "Here, let me help you up,"
said Jim in his broken Japanese.
Minako sighed. "Sure!"
she said happily in English.
"Kami-sama. She's trying to
milk this for all it's worth," groaned Rei.
Mamoru didn't
like the way Usagi was acting. Her eyes looked blank and she
hadn't said a word in about a half-hour. "Usako? Talk to
me."
"He's hurting her. I can feel it. And there is
nothing I can do about it."
Mamoru couldn't stand the way
she was acting. He kissed her lips and held her in his arms.
"Don't go away, Usako. Please."
Usagi finally blinked
and held him tightly. "Gomen ne, Mamo-chan. I'm just so
worried about her. I'll try to be a little happier. We'll get her
back." Usagi's smile returned to her face as she gazed
lovingly into his eyes.
"Oh, come on you two,"
mumbled Ami.
"Get a hotel room! We don't need to see that
here," said Mako in mock disgust as ChibiUsa grabbed her
throat and made gagging noises.
Mamoru suddenly leaned forward
and clutched his chest. "Mamo-chan!" Usagi and ChibiUsa
helped him stay upright.
"Your little Princess pissed me
off." Sir Grety appeared in the air. "Now her little
boyfriend is going to suffer."
"Jupiter Crystal
Power!"
"Venus Crystal Power!"
"Mars
Crystal Power!"
"Mercury Crystal Power!"
"Moon
Crisis!"
"Make Up!"
Grety's eyes turned red
and fired lasers at Jim. Venus pushed him out of the way, landing
on top of him when they stopped moving. Jim looked into her eyes.
"Arigato," he gentely said.
Venus blushed. "No
problem."
"Uh, guys? This isn't the time!"
yelled Mars.
"Mercury Aqua Rhapsody!" yelled
Mercury.
"Moon Gorgeous Meditation!" yelled
ChibiMoon.
The attacks hit Grety, but instead Mamoru screamed
in pain. It was so severe, he had to lay down.
Usagi placed a
wet napkin on his forehead. "It's going to be okay,
Honey."
Grety laughed. "Every time you hit me, you
see, you speed up his death! But I'll be leaving soon, so you
won't have to worry about that. Just wanted to tell you that I am
getting rid of my competition." Grety once again laughed as
he left. "Enjoy hell, Prince!"
"Mamo-chan! Say
something!"
"I fell like shit," he said.
Usagi
tried to smile. "Well, you said
something."
Candra
was sitting on her bed, holding herself like she was cold.
Serenity, something is wrong isn't it?
"Hey,
Sweetheart. Guess what I just did?" Grety said through the
door. "I decided that, since you couldn't choose between the
two of us, I wouldn't make you."
Candra's head snapped up.
"Oh, no," she whispered.
"He should be dead in
an hour. 'Night, Dear."
Oh, God! Serenity, is that why
you are crying? I have to help you. She checked to see if he
was still at the door, then went to find the Crystal Tower.
She
ran down one hallway after another. "Maybe here? No, this
hall. . .Shoot. Serenity? I need your help."
Queen
Serenity appeared. "Follow me."
Candra followed her
mother to the Crystal Tower. "Please Crystal Tower," she
prayed out loud, "save Prince Endymion. Take off the spell
that is on him. Serenity, my sister, needs him." The tower
started to glow. "Please, help preserve their love." Her
crescent moon birthmark began to glow. She finally became the
Princess she was destined to be. "Save him!"
Usagi's
ears perked up. "Candra?"
The moon began to glow.
Mamoru started to glow, too. The color slowly returned to his
face. The pain disappeared and his breathing became regular. He
looked at Usagi. "Usako, I feel ten times better."
Everyone
breathed a sigh of relief.
"Mamo-chan! Candra saved you!
Somehow, she was able to save you." She couldn't help feeling
a little let down, though. She had thought Candra was back. I
guess this means she's okay. Until I see her again, though, I
should enjoy my time with my other friends.
Chapter Eleven: The Great Escape! Candra Loses Her Past.
